Friends and Lovers
by obsidian dreamer
Summary: For every action, there is a reaction. As Lara and Wyn prove their love, Locke must suffer for his own mistake again. Has he the character to accept that his love has found another? And what's Tails up to? WynXLaraLe. Continuation from Psyche Out. C
1. Chapter 1 A Father's Duty

**Friends and Lovers.**

Disclaimer and Author Notes: First off, normal spiel – I don't own Sonic the hedgehog or any of his friends; a crying shame, but there we go.

All righty then; this fic will be lucky number seven in the series, again I have to stress things will only really make sense if you've read them all so far up to this point. In reading order, the series goes: Angel of Darkness and Ice, The Best Medicine, A Bloodstone Rose, Iron Skin Golden Heart, Lose Your Illusions, Psyche Out and now lastly Friends and Lovers. Hope you enjoy it and the old crowd of reviewers like what they see. Just to be clear:

"-----" – Speech.

_Italics_ – Thoughts.

The show goes ever on and on…

Chapter 1 – A Father's Duty.

_This is going to be delicate_; despite all his years of training in possibly the most difficult and taxing profession of the lot, Sabre was still nervous about what he had to do now; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get the scenarios of wrath and despise from out of his head. He was no fool and as such had no illusions that there was going to be no easy way out of what needed to be said now; at best, only one person out of this mess was going to end up hurt, and a certain fatalism was gleefully pointing out it was probably going to be him. _Well, on the bright side, I can at least heal myself_; it wasn't a cheery thought, but given the circumstances it was the best he could do.

His slow, solitary footsteps echoed down the long steel hallway that led to his eventual destination; he fiddled with his monocle as he went back over what had happened to bring events to this; Spectre had ordered all bar one of the Brotherhood of Guardians to the centre of their ancestral home, the mighty underground fortress of Haven, to impart the news granted to them by the youngest member, the current guardian of the Master Emerald Knuckles. The atmosphere was undeniably grim in the conference; with the return of the Brotherhood's ancient foes, the enigmatic, technocratic faction of the Dark Legion as well as the sudden reappearance of the echidna civilisation to a world that they were only just beginning to explore and understand meant the threats to the Master had never been so great, or so varied. Pausing for a second, Sabre examined this thought and nodded, his deadlocks chafing over the white gown he wore as a matter of course; _yes, I have to agree with Rouge_; his own limited experiences of the world outside Haven had prompted him to concur with one of the first statements his granddaughter-in-law's had made to the Brotherhood; _Knuckles has had to deal with threats the rest of us had never known._

He sighed as he realised he was stalling; try as he might, he couldn't delay the inevitable. As Spectre, eldest and most serious of the Brotherhood, had told them calmly, the news Knuckles carried was not grim in the least, but it would impact greatly on the single member of the Brotherhood who's absence from the meeting was noticeable. He would have to be informed though, there was no way he couldn't not be told what was now going on; the problem was no-one wanted to actually do it – even Athair, once he had figured out the problem, had for possibly the first time in his memory calmed down and paced, actually _paced_, around the floor in concern. The argument as to who should do it had been fast, furious and hushed, they didn't want to alarm him before the time was right; in the end, Spectre had decreed the only way it could be done was by the roll of a single dice. The black furred echidna had also implied that any telekinetic tampering of this roll by the common powers of the guardian bloodline would be punished by a month's worth of latrine duty or, in Athair's case, a month of wearing the lead-reinforced straight jacket that stopped him flying. Each echidna had crossed every digit they possessed and Sabre's horror had been matched only by everyone else's relief and mingled compassion for him as, treating every step as though it could be the last he may take in this life. _But I am Locke's father_; the former guardian spoke in his mind, steeling his resolve as much as was possible; _this is my responsibility if it is anyone's._

The journey was slow and stretched almost to breaking point, but it progressed still; Sabre knew he was coming to the end of it and prepared himself mentally and physically; even for a guardian, he was looking remarkably sprightly for his sixty-eight years. Just for a fleeting second he regretted never having taken up his fourth-father's offer of extra fitness classes up; right now the ability to do a four minute mile sounded a very tempting prospect indeed. _But_; his medical mind finally poured oil over his churning thoughts, allowing him to take a deep breath and clear his mind; _there's no time to take back the past – I have to deal with the present and the present alone here._ With this in mind, the surgeon of the Brotherhood of Guardians drew back his spurred hand and knocked on the door in front of him, a few last traces of red paint smudged on the front depicting that it had once been off-limits to visitors of Haven. For a second there was only silence, he began to believe that there was no-one in, when to his mixed dread and relief, there was a little shuffling from behind the heavy metal door and it was suddenly swung open, the echidna on the other side also bedecked in a white coat as he looked Sabre up and down and queried,

"May I help you father?"

XXX

_What does dad want here?_; Locke looked at his father's face in concern, seeing apprehension and fear, why was Sabre afraid, here in Haven? Had he done something wrong, or was he having a problem with something mechanical that he needed Locke's help with; yeah, that was probably it – Locke was careful to keep his face neutral, but inside he was smiling as he pictured finally being able to get his own back after listening to so many young pup jokes. Settling his weight onto his back foot, Locke waited for his father to spell out his request,

"Hello Locke", the older echidna shifted restlessly, Locke imagined he was screwing up the courage to make his request, "mind if I come in?" He didn't reply, merely pivoting around to allow Sabre into his workshop, where he created the machinery that helped Haven to run as smoothly as it did. He watched his father step inside, head bowed slightly and his suspicions rose a little; _if it was just a request to fix something, why did he want to come in – this isn't going to be a speech about not getting out enough is it?_ Locke silently closed his eyes; that was the last thing he wanted right now but, as Sabre turned around, he braced himself for it.

"So", the surgeon began, trying to paper over the lengthening pause, casting a glance around the half-completed components liberally strewn around the interior of this disorderly mess; in his quieter moments, he had to wonder how his son managed to find anything in a heap like this, though Locke always assured him he knew exactly where everything was at any given time, "what are you working on now?"

"I, ah", disarmed by the question, Locke was stumped for an answer of a few minutes, "it's, er, just a device that shuts off robotics for a few minutes at a time. I was hoping to develop it as a weapon against the Dark Legion".

"Good idea", Sabre complimented his son, trying to build a rapport before moving onto the more delicate news he had to impart, "shut their augmentations down for a while, enough for a capture or knock them out, I like it. Enerjak seems to be a pacifist, maybe even more so than Dimitri was, I suppose it's only fair we reciprocate". A sneer creased Locke's face,

"He might be pacifist, but he needs tighter reins for his family", Sabre winced, he hadn't thought of that possible reminder; _got to limit the damage_;

"True, but they have learnt their lesson – one of them paid for that mistake with her life; no matter what her belief, she was still part of our extended family"; Sabre recalled the silence the Brotherhood had observed religiously in memory of the departed Dark Legionnaire who had been one of the masterminds behind that plot to capture Knuckles, his wife Rouge and the Chaotix who now shared his sacred duty. Locke nodded slowly, accepting the point before biting the bullet,

"Be that as it may, you didn't just come here to discuss my pet projects", he smiled guardedly as Sabre looked up, eyebrow high enough to set his monocle wavering a little as it looked for support, "I know you well enough father; you have something you wanted to say?" Having cast his die, the younger former guardian settled down, preparing for a lecture that never arrived.

_Well_; he'd put it off as long as was conceivable, but now he had no choice; _it's time to end this_. Licking his lips and praying to the spirit of the Master Emerald to help him in this difficult time, Sabre looked up and began,

"We, ah, have had a call son; a little while ago, Knuckles spoke to grandfather Spectre…" Suspicion seized Locke's keen sense of pessimism,

"Is he alright?" Sabre was quick to set him at ease,

"Yes, he's doing fine", the surgeon had to chuckle despite the grim situation, a light moment in the call penetrating through the gloom, "apart from Vector accidentally setting the doorway to his home on fire, everything's going swimmingly". Locke smiled as well but, Sabre saw, the smile never touched his cold eyes; _he's too determined – he'll hear this and nothing I say will change that_;

"Glad to here that, but anyway, you were saying?"

"Yes, well, he has contacted us with news, news of…Lara-Le".

As he had expected, the name alone transformed Locke; in the space of a second he had changed from a clinical scientist to a sworn protector, his eyes aflame with the want, no, want was too gentle a term, the _need_ to protect his ex-wife. Despite the bitterness of their divorce, Locke wouldn't let go of the memory of what had, and more damagingly, what could have been; he was besotted by the female echidna who had been his wife and as such, any threat to her was flattened by any means he possessed. Locke's hands balled into fists, beginning to glow with a green flame as he unconsciously channelled the power of the Master through him, the physical manifestation of his love from Lara, springing into life as he grated,

"What news?" His eyes bored into Sabre like a scalpel through tissue paper, "what has happened to her?" Sabre swallowed gently; _I can't back out now_;

"Lara-Le…is now, engaged, son".

XXX

He had tried to predict the reaction, but there had been far too many possibilities for him to consider them all; as nothing had blown up apocalyptically and Locke was screaming for blood and murder, he guessed this was one of the more favourable options. Locke stood still as stone; Sabre could virtually see the words sinking in, through his flesh, past his bone to burn directly onto his brain – there was a virtual struggle as he tried to disbelieve what his father had said, but it was a struggle in vain. Helpless, Sabre was forced to watch Locke, his obtuse but still loved son, have even his wildest hopes of reconciliation with his former spouse smashed to ruins. To his credit, the former guardian did nothing more than close his eyes for a second, a terrible second after the words had been accepted by his numb brain, and speak softly,

"I see". Sabre said nothing; what was there he could say? He waited patiently for Locke to take his first few breaths and ask, eyes still closed,

"To Wynmacher, I take it?"

"Yes, he proposed to her this morning; apparently the trip with the Legion had been enough to convince him that she really was the one he loved".

"I see", Locke said again as Sabre tried to analyse what was going through his son's mind; _nothing good – he's far too calm to be taking this in_; he stopped his thoughts as Locke looked at him again, drawing in another rattling breath,

"Knuckles…?" Sabre was smart enough to take an educated guess what he meant,

"As far as I can tell, he…doesn't oppose the idea"; Sabre thought it better not to tell of the ecstasy in the guardian's voice as he had hollered that his mum was getting married down the phone to Spectre; Locke could hear of that later. Right now, the mechanic of the Brotherhood needed, something, but what that might be Sabre couldn't tell – he still refused to display anything meaningful for him to work with, no anger or rage, nothing beyond the ice-Mobian persona he so often affected.

"So", Locke's voice again dragged him back to the present, "how did it happen?"

"Apparently, Lara was dining with Rouge and Vector of the Chaotix at Wyn's place of work; he apparently smuggled the ring under their bill with a small note – there was a little confusion when Rouge picked it up, but I think Lara was smart enough to realise what it meant".

"And she said yes".

The words were heavy with fatalism; Sabre wasn't meant if Locke was talking to himself or to him but a second later it was a moot point as Locke looked up and pointed to the door,

"Thank you father, for bringing this to my attention. Inform Lara of my congratulations if she is willing to accept them, but now I must get on".

"No Locke, you don't", Sabre stood firm at this point; Locke wanted to be alone as he always was, deal with this on his own but not this time, "you need to talk…"

"Very well", the admission caught Sabre off-guard; before he could recover Locke's words of acid and spite had cut him to the bone, "the only woman I have ever loved I threw away and now she's marrying someone else to be happy again; good for her. My son is happy with this arrangement and so is everyone else; in the light of this what I think is immaterial. Nothing I do will alter what will happen and even if it were to, Lara would only hate me more for doing it – therefore, I shall do nothing to oppose this union; if it is what Lara wants, I will bear it".

"And you will let Wyn…?"

"What should I do?" Locke let a grim, mirthless chuckle slip from his lips, "challenge him to duel for Lara's hand? No, that is stupidity and will only hurt her again, something I will never do while there is breath in my body. Now I have work to do to make Angel Island's future, Lara's future, more secure from the threats against it". With that, the finality in Locke's eyes as well as his tone, Sabre knew there was nothing he could do; not now at least – the pain was too raw, too fresh fro him to try and staunch it yet, that was something only time, and lots of it, would heal. Bowing his head, hoping Locke was sensible enough to do nothing stupid, Sabre slipped from the room, hearing the door bang shut behind him as he departed far more rapidly than he had arrived.

XXX

"Son", Sabre was so preoccupied with the problem of Locke that he looked around before he looked up, "how'd it go?"

"In truth", the surgeon sighed as the flying form of his own father, the at least half-insane Athair, descended to hover in front of him, "better than I expected, yet at the same time worse". The child-like eyes widened, Athair rolling his body as well as his eyes as he sought to understand what his son had said,

"You mean he's locked himself in his room and not coming out?"

"Something along those lines".

"Well in that case…"; it was only Sabre leaping up and grabbing his arm that stopped Athair rushing to Locke's lab, the surgeon whispering frantically,

"No, not anything yet; it's been a big shock for him, we better leave it a while before we try anything".

"Very well son, you'd better tell the other oldies", Sabre smothered a smile at Athair's proclamation as the flying echidna made to shoot off, his wrapped spines trailing behind him as the younger echidna called off after him,

"Where are you going father?"

"To see grandfather Spectre; maybe he'll let me go and see little Lara and say congratulations". _Maybe he will_; Sabre waited until his father had turned a corner before sniggering; _and maybe we'll hear the yelping of devils with frostbite as pigs go sailing overhead as well_; for a delicious, fleeting second, under the lightness of his father's madness, the problem of what he was going to do with Locke was forgotten from Sabre's mind.

A/N: Sorry for the updating delay; I now have a nine-to-five job, so this may slow my work up somewhat. I'll still try though, just bear with me a bit.


	2. Chapter 2 Good News Travels Fast

Chapter 2 – Good News Travels Fast.

A/N: Looks like Locke's getting a bit of support from the trusty reviewers; he'll need all the help he can get to pull through this. I just realised the reply to review function, but if it's all the same to you guys, I'll carry on like this:

HHH – Funny you should mention the purple one as you'll read later. BTW, which console does the new Shadow game run on, and is it as good as they were making it out to be?

Ri2 – Yeah, Locke still loves her with his heart even if his head knows there's no way to reconcile; question is, can he sacrifice his own dreams of getting back together with Lara to ensure she can be happy with Wyn?

TH – Chapter two here for you, little Red Bull demon that you are.

Lara-Le still couldn't believe what was happening.

The ring on its own had blown her world apart; all she vaguely remembered was storming into the kitchen and throwing her arms around Wynmacher, almost sending the chef tumbling backwards onto the stove he was working on, only a lucky pirouette saving his tail from incineration as he kissed the woman who had declared she would become his bride. From there the two had emerged to a cheering, whistling restaurant, most of the regular patrons as exuberant in their congratulations as Lara's daughter-in-law was, Rouge with tears in her eyes as she hugged first one, then the other of the new fiancés. In fact, all three had been so wrapped up in their celebrations it had come as a bit of a shock when Lara had felt her shoulder tapped by a large, scaly green hand; Vector offering his mobile and grinning,

"Just got red on the blower; says he wants a quick word". Without really thinking, as if there was enough of her mind left to think in the whirl of celebration now all around her, Lara brought the phone to her ear,

"Hey sweetie"; Knuckles had been virtually breathless with excitement,

"Did you say yes?"

"Yes, yes I did"; her son's cheer had probably been audible to half the local neighbourhood, as had his frenzied yell for the rest of the Chaotix to move out, hang the emerald for a day; she had managed to cobble together a plan involving a day's leave on compassionate grounds from the general infirmary, then a grand celebration for anyone and everyone who could make it over at her home.

And now, as yet another round of small explosions and a veritable cascade of confetti descended on the revelling heads, that party was well and truly in full swing. As Wyn had quickly finished the work he needed to do in the kitchens to complete his shift, Lara, assisted by Rouge and Vector, had just about managed to clear most of the furniture out of the front room and somehow bankrupt the nearby corner shop out of crisps and pop before everyone had steamed in. There had been a brief moment of solemnity as Knuckles had entered first, face firm as he looked over at where Wyn was standing; silence had descended as the guardian had strode over, no-one daring to interfere as the brown echidna faced him. Knuckles had halted a mere arms-length away from Wyn, not saying a word as gradually, so gradually, he extended his right hand, the spurs on it held down, away from his mother's fiancé. Equally nervously, Wyn had reciprocated, gently gripping the guardian's paw; Knuckles had smiled for a split-second before stepping forwards again, his other arm embracing the older echidna, holding him tightly as he whispered,

"About time"; Wyn had made to admonish the echidna would become his step-son for his cheek, but found that he couldn't, not now; it was great Knuckles was able to talk to him like this, fantastic that he didn't oppose his proposing his mother. There had been another explosive yell of joy as Knuckles had disengaged, clapping the chef on the shoulder one last time before receiving his mother's grateful, warm embrace.

XXX

Having just finished a lively number with the future groom, Mighty collapsed onto a nearby seat, just underneath Charmy, who was watching the proceedings from on high. Taking a second to catch her breath, the armadillo called to her bee friend,

"Hey Charm", he looked down and descended, smoothing out wings as he landed just in front and to the side of her, "tell me what it is I've forgotten". He was understandably perplexed by this,

"Huh?"

"I know there was, and still is probably, something happening today", she tapped the shell that hung over her forehead like a miniature cliff, the heavy natural armour making a hollow knocking noise as she tried to beat her memory back into gear, "I even had a reminder pinned on my bedroom wall, but can I remember it?"

"Obviously not", the bee laughed as he reached past her, jumping off the fringes of the dance floor in time to avoid being knocked off his feet by Rouge's; the bat was half-on, half—off the floor as she was attempting to dance with Vector. The armadillo shook her helmeted head as her insect friend and work colleague wiped imaginary sweat from his brow at his close escape and then she looked around, perturbed by something,

"Just a sec, where's Espio?"

"At the shrine", Charmy's face fell, partly in disgust and partly in despair as he explained, "said someone needed to watch the shrine no matter the circumstances; any day now he'll be after Knuckles' job full time".

"Wall-crawler needs to lighten up" Mighty agreed as she remembered the taciturn chameleon and how he seemed to abhor anything even remotely connected with fun; _how he got on with Vector before they met Charmy I shall never know_. The bee nodded before looking around again, seemingly deep in thought,

"This thing you forgot, any sort of clues?"

"Nope", Mighty flicked her forehead with the look of a clueless dope on her face, "completely gone out my head".

"Your shell; that need cleaning?"

"Nah, it'll be good for a couple more days; come on", she spoke chidingly to herself, "it's in there somewhere". Charmy again tried to jog her memory,

"Nothing like a, um, a social call to a friend? Visits? Anything like that?" At that point, Mighty suddenly straightened and the bee congratulated himself as she spoke,

"There we go, that's the one. I remembered what it is now". The bee tugged her well-muscled arm, mindful of where it had recently been healed after her fight with Metal Sonic had left it sundered,

"What was it?" The armadillo gestured towards the entrance to the lounge, smile now growing to epidemic proportions,

"It's just walked through the front door".

XXX

_Well, I guess someone's in_; Tails still felt a little rude just barging in like this, but just from the noise he could hear pounding out from behind the door he knew someone must be in, and having an absolute whale of a time to boot. He quickly and quietly slipped inside, hoping against hope that Lara would be able to help him track down the Mobian he was after; for some reason he couldn't get hold of Mighty on her phone, or Knuckles for that matter. He had been afraid of a widespread blackout, that for some reason all networks had gone down over Angel Island, but the second he was indoors he realised that there was much simpler reason why he hadn't been able to get through to either of the other Mobians; the music here was loud enough to drown out anything like a ring tone.

"Tails", the shout went up; next thing he knew there was a lot of pink in his vision as Rouge had hugged him tightly; had he not been so shocked, he may have enjoyed the sensation a lot more than he actually did, "I don't care why you're here, but we're all glad you are. Come in, the party's just starting". Deciding arguing would be counter-productive at best the fox meekly fell into line behind the deliriously overjoyed bat and let himself be led into the main room, where all the cheering was coming from.

His first emotion was relief; both the Mobians he'd tried to contact, especially Mighty, were here and accounted for – straight after this though came confusion; _why's Lara hosting a party – it has to be something good, but what?_ Thinking on his feet, Tails shouldered and slipped his way through the crowd and eventually ended up stood in front of where Lara was sat down, speaking to Wynmacher; _wait a minute, their faces, they…_; before he could let himself think too far ahead, the fox asked the question,

"What's going on?" Wyn laughed and slapped his knee, spreading his arms to encompass the whole room,

"We're having a party".

"I can see that", despite himself Tails smiled as he took in the jovial celebrations around him, the sight of Charmy playing very confined aerial tag with Rouge a sight to savour before he crossed his fingers and went for the jugular of his questions, "but what's the occasion?" _Please tell me I'm on the right lines…oh YES!_

In answer, Lara had slowly slipped her glove from her left hand; as a band of burnished gold caught the light and glinted right into his eyes, Tails felt his heart ignite as he punched the air with a long howl of pure joy. He didn't descend, using his tails to propel himself forwards he landed in the arms of the echidna lady who he had come to see as something very like a mother figure, at least while he was here on Angel Island. Up here, Lara took it upon herself to look out for him, was always ready to offer a place for him to stay if he needed it; personally and for good reason privately as well, Tails had come to think of Lara as the mother he had, despite Sonic's best and most self-sacrificing efforts, never really known. Such feelings though, strong as they were, he kept to himself; he wasn't and probably never would be completely sure what Lara thought of him, and it wasn't just her feelings he had to be mindful of – there was Knuckles to consider as well and just for good measure, as he embraced the guardian's mother hard Tails felt his eyes rest on Wyn, the brown echidna smiling as he reached over to ruffle his hear fur, there was now Wynmacher, her soon-to-be husband as well.

"Way to go Lara; when's the big day?" There was a chuckle as she held him tightly,

"Hey, he only popped the question this morning; he's not that organised to have picked a date yet"; Wyn raised a casual eyebrow,

"And I suppose you would be o organised one?" Lara shook her head, smiling still as she realised how little thought she'd given that eventuality, but it didn't matter, not right now.

"Nah, but we can deal with that later; you go and have some fun Tails, that's an order". He gave a cheeky salute,

"I'm on it". He turned to leave and would have plunged into the party headlong had not a paw descended on his shoulder; he froze as Wyn whispered into his ear,

"Hold your horses you; there's a price for entry this time. By law, Lara and I have half of everything the other owns, so hand over anything you may be carrying that's either really sweet or smothered in chocolate".

"You're on a diet"; he could virtually taste the sauce permeating the chef's next words,

"Only when Lara's looking; now pass it to me or I'll cut off your tails and bake you in a pie".

"How much would you sell it for?"

"Sell? I'd be giving it away"; Tails shook his head and reached into his phone pouch – with a little rustling noise, a small plastic bag bulging with small chocolate spheres hove into view. In one practised movement Wyn had opened the bag and had one of them in his mouth, shuddering at the sweetness as Tails poked his arm,

"Just you remember to give Lara half you gannet". Unable to talk politely, Wyn merely nodded and, chuckling, the fox moved back into the milling crowd.

XXX

"Awesome", Mighty sat back in the seat next to her pilot, recalling the past few hours as well as the Mobian she was going to see would have been able to, "just awesome".

"I know", Tails eased off the speed as, even in the deepening gloom of the twilight, he could pick out the landmarks of his Mystic Ruins home, "first Knuckles and Rouge, now this; two weddings in under a year, hell of a way to go".

"Tell me about it", the armadillo gave a thumbs-up before folding her hands into her lap, "can't wait to let Big know; this time he'll have to come over to Angel Island, he did last time". A little devil of mischief sprang up in the heart of the fox and he fought hard to keep his face neutral as he inquired politely,

"Speaking of Big", he saw Mighty prick her ears at the mention of the Mobian he was taking her to see, "any chance of three weddings this year? Wait, I'm flying, I'm flying!" He gabbled desperately as Mighty's face had suddenly stretched to deliver a menacing snarl, her hands raised to dig right into him; all he could offer in defence was the risk they might crash if she tried anything. It must have worked as she sat back down, looking at him disgustedly,

"Where's Cream when you need her?" _Okay, prepare for embarrassment_; Tails saw the sudden glint in his passenger's eyes, "in fact, if there were to be three I'd be looking a bit closer to home if I were you foxboy".

"I'm only just a teenager and she's not even that yet", he pleaded, though he doubted he was making much headway as his face was red as a cherry and Mighty wasn't even bothering to try and conceal her smirk,

"Young love is the best kind there is, and you two together are just too cute". Tails had to sit on his free hand that was almost of its own volition creeping towards the passenger eject button on the dashboard, thinking evil thoughts towards the Mobian sat next to him as she laughed with her eyes.

"One more word Mighty and you'll be walking to Big's; or trying to at least", it was his turn to grin as her face hardened, "knowing you I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up somewhere…."

"If you've quite finished", the armadillo cut him off, irked that he was still lampooning her errant sense of direction as she pointed out the windscreen, "you might want to think about landing?"

"I might" the fox conceded, pulling the Tornado around and set in the landing course, aiming dead straight for the runway as his other hand reached for the transforming button; this was a gesture Mighty didn't like, especially when coupled with the evil smirk on the fox's lips,

"Tails, what are you doing?" The fox looked her dead in the eye and slammed his paw down,

"Roll out!"

XXX

Big's laugh boomed out like a quiet thunder as Mighty glowered at him good-naturedly; the cat wiped his eyes as he turned their collective meal over with his free hand,

"So you really squealed?"

"Believe me, that was the gentlest thing I could have done", the armadillo recalled the terrifying sensations that had come when the transforming Tornado hit the ground, the wheels of its jeep mode just about absorbing the shock as she had gasped in air and prayed for her soul's salvation, "bloody fox nearly gave me a heart attack – I don't think they teach you that in pilot school, or at least I hope they don't".

"Ah, he's still a kid at heart", the cat added sagely, causing the armadillo to look up towards him with her eyebrow's raised, "he's still got that fearlessness that only comes with youth, and good for him; you only realised how important it is when you grow up and lose it".

"True, very true", Mighty allowed herself a minute to mull over the philosophical words before suddenly clapping her hands, bringing the topic back to the better news she had imparted, "anyway, enough about him; Lara's engaged and we're all looking forwards to the big day".

"Any ideas?"

"None yet, but who cares; all that matters is it's happening, but I reckon it'll be in summer if I'm any judge"; the cat rubbed his hands gratefully,

"Excellent, the eels come out in summer, I'll be able to grab some then and make sure the reception goes with a bang, what do you think Mighty? Mighty?"

A sudden fear, mixed with electric excitement, swept over the purple cat as Mighty had stood up; originally he'd thought nothing of this, but then he'd seen her face, the look in her eye and the way she was slowly walking towards where he sat,

"You know Big", he swallowed a little, trying to concentrate on not letting dinner burn as she still advanced, voice throaty and sincere, "this really does put everything into perspective".

"R,Really? How do you mean?" His hazel eyes blinked as the armadillo came ever closer, speaking in that same, almost seductive tone,

"I mean that, when you look at it", Big was forced to sit back, blood rising to his face as Mighty eased herself around him, the pressure on his knee indicating where she'd sat down, "doesn't it show you how grateful we can be for the touch of a loved one's hand? I know I am, grateful I mean".

"I, er"; _oh boy, wasn't expecting this_; the cat felt a strange light-headedness before the armadillo leaned up, whispering into his closest ear.

A second later, there was a sudden squawk of shock, a thump of a body impacting on the floor and an indignant voice roared out over the silent swamp,

"Scratch your own damn back!" There was another second of silence before, in concert, two voices laughed out loud in the quiet of the night.

XXX

Even in the middle of a fast dance with her son, Knuckles again reassuring her that he would never even consider opposing her marrying Wynmacher, her ears were well attuned to the crisp ringing of her home phone. Disentangling herself from the guardian, the bride-to-be quickly ducked into the hall, picked up the buzzing machine and headed for the nearest quiet room. Once there, the noise of the ongoing celebrations muffled from the conversation, she hit the answering button and greeted,

"Hello?"

"Hey, congratulations to the blushing bride"; her eyes widened as she recognised the voice,

"Sonic?"

"The one and only", the blue hedgehog on the other end of the line chuckled and explained, "news travels quick down here; got the news from my little bro after he dropped Mighty off; congrats to you and Wynmacher as well, wherever he is".

"Hey Lara", a second voice broke into the conversation, the echidna recognising Amy Rose's voice and smiling because of it, "well done, and Shadow says the same as well".

"Thank you both, it does mean a lot"; that was the definite truth – Lara was touched that so many people besides her own personal friends were making the effort to offer their support for the union. She smiled as she heard who she assumed to be Sonic shooing the other two hedgehogs away before his voice came through to her again,

"Sorry about that; listen, is Knuckles for a second? Got some things to say to him".

"He's here, I'll see if I can find him", the hedgehog hero heard the phone being set down; there was a wait of about thirty seconds before he was picked up again,

"Hey Smurf"; Sonic gritted his teeth,

"Mighty let you in on that one did she?"

"You bet; that is pure gold – what's it worth I don't tell Rouge about it?"

"The fact that if you do I'll not be held responsible for the consequences if she calls me it".

"She can handle anything you can throw at her".

"Oh you have no idea", the hedgehog shook himself; amusing as this diversion was it wasn't what he was here to talk about, "anyway, forget that; how are you feeling about all this?"

"What, mum's getting married?" The guardian laughed a little, "Sonic, in all honesty I couldn't be happier; I know Wyn thinks the world of her and vice-versa, so she deserves it". He almost felt the temperature of the blue hedgehog's voice drop,

"What about…?"

"I'll deal with him later", Knuckles knew it would have to be him; there was no way he could ask his mother, or her fiancé for that matter, to face Locke after this, "he knows, I called the Brotherhood but left it short – I'll make sure he's not about to do anything stupid".

"Good, just glad you're feeling happy about this". The echidna laughed,

"What are you, my therapist?"

"Nah, I don't get paid enough; I'm your conscience".

"Now I'm really worried; listen, tell the others thanks for the call – I or Lara will let you know when it all kicks off", Sonic heard a door open suddenly and Knuckles shout nearly deafened him in one ear, "gotta go!" _That was strange_; Sonic listened and replaced the phone as the echidna hung up; _what got him so rattled?_

XXX

"Fifth-father"; _oh now what?_; it had already been a long day and Spectre was not in the best of tempers – somehow Sabre rushing up to him didn't inspire confidence that this was anything to be pleased about.

"What is it Sabre?" The younger echidna skidded to a halt and looked up at his much older relative, taking a second to recapture his breath,

"He's gone fifth-father, he's not in Haven". _Curse you Locke_; Spectre had hoped that his youngest but one son's level head would have prevented him doing anything rash; this was obviously false in the case of Lara-Le. Smoke began to pump from under Spectre's robes, a physical manifestation of his rising anger as he spoke,

"Right, assemble the others, tell Sojourner to go and warn Wyn of what's about to happen and tell him not to panic, we'll handle it. We need to track him down before he does anything stupid".

"Stupid", Sabre huffed, "that's his middle name isn't it?" That got Spectre's mind, already prodigious by any stretch of the imagination, working; to disguise his discontent, he spoke into the silence,

"That's no way to talk about your son is it Sabre?"

"I'm not on about Locke", the surgeon folded his arms, realising the controversy and made it clear, "I'm on about your son". He saw Spectre's eyes close and braced himself; to his ineffable surprise, the black echidna reopened them after a second and merely sighed, turning back around with a shrug,

"Well, I suppose it's better than Locke going mad; I have Athair looking over his shoulder to monitor his actions; if he tries anything, he'll let us know". Sabre's eyes shot open so wide in horror his monocle fell out,

"You, you're not worried what he'll do?"

"Oh I know exactly what he'll do", a dangerous smile crossed the seventh-father's lips, "believe me Sabre, even Thunderhawk can learn, if you give him the right example". Not quite seeing what his fifth-father meant, Sabre nevertheless trusted him; Spectre was nothing if not usually accurate.

XXX

The knock came again; Rouge, who was fastest to the door, opened it and promptly fell over laughing, allowing the purple echidna on the other side to step over the threshold, rubbing his hands in glee as he looked down at where the bat was leaning against the wall for support,

"Well, where is he sixth-daughter?" She raised a shaking finger,

"Through there", the former spy managed to pull herself together to some degree as she asked, "you're not going to do what you did last time, surely not?" Thunderhawk shook his head,

"Not to the same extent no", the bat laughed again,

"Aww, shame; last time was so funny"; the lavender guardian fixed her with a stern eye, zipping up his coat to disguise the crest on his chest as he muttered,

"You weren't the one Spectre had a vendetta against", his voice rose as he stepped inside, "right then, here we go".

Slight silence fell as everyone saw the newest arrival to the party; Thunderhawk, however, had eyes only for the echidna who had at one time been his fifth-daughter-in-law. Lara's eyes were understandably hard as she remembered what had happened last time he had shown up at her home; the memory was still enough to make her blush now, but at least he was sober now. For his part, the former guardian merely walked over to her and inclined his head deeply,

"Lara, I extend not only my own wishes of good will, but those of the whole Brotherhood as well"; it was such a callous display of outright charm that she couldn't help but feel her heart soften, just a little bit, a slight smile pulling on her lips; _well, boys will be boys…_;

"I can guess what else you're after Thunderhawk", he raised his eyes at her wafted hand, "just go steady; they've all got work tomorrow, and don't bring them back here tonight, got it?"

"Impeccably Lara"; mind singing wonderful praises to the world, the sixth-father stood and raised his voice, "right, who's up for a quiet celebratory drink at the local?"

"Translation: anyone who's over age and male get over here now" Rouge called, watching on with a chuckle as Vector scrambled over to the purple echidna at the same time Lara gave Wyn the nod.

"Where's Knuckles?"

"In the spare room; phone call"; Thunderhawk nodded and raised a forestalling hand to Charmy,

"Leave it to me; I'll get him". The lavender echidna quickly moved down the short hallway and pushed open the door; he locked eyes with his sixth-son and just heard Knuckles scream,

"Gotta go!" down the phone before switching it off and leaping backwards, hands raised,

"No, no way and never, in that order, not after last time".

"Oh don't be such a baby", Thunderhawk circled, the current guardian making to jump over the bed to get away, "it won't be as bad as last time".

"I know it won't; I won't be there" Knuckles declared as he jumped up, sprawling over the bed as his older relative charged, seeking to drag him to the celebrations kicking and screaming,

"Knuckles, you're making this harder than it has to be", Thunderhawk roared, giving up on him physically and instead making peace with the Master to bring his youngest son to heel; Knuckles felt something like a lasso loop around his waist and struggled against it,

"No fair, let go".

"Fine"; the telekinetic hold dropped and the guardian was promptly wrapped up in Thunderhawk's patented full-nelson before being slung over one shoulder.

"Right, all present and correct then" Thunderhawk said brightly, seemingly ignoring the thrashing echidna he was holding and the assembled curses he was calling that were turning the air blue.

"Knuckles"; _saved_; the guardian recognised his mother's voice and knew she'd put a stop to this, "watch your language, there are youngsters present". He twisted until he could see her out the corner of his eye,

"But…"

"No buts", Lara cut him off, pointing to the door, "he said it wasn't going to be as heavy as last time, and anyway you're going to Wyn's afterwards, so you're going to have a night out with the lads; one won't kill you". Somehow her words didn't comfort him, the guardian wriggling even harder as Thunderhawk moved out of the hallway; in desperation, Knuckles grabbed the doorframe and clung on desperately,

"I don't wanna go!"

"You're going", Rouge slid up to her husband's side and suddenly her hands moved, "electric shock". Knuckles couldn't resist that; he jerked his hands back to protect his ribs from Rouge's tormenting fingers and Thunderhawk took his chance and stormed forwards, Knuckles pointing at his wife and promising,

"I'll get you for that batgirl; I'll…"; thankfully, Vector shutting the front door after Thunderhawk walked through it shut off the rest of his dire promises.

A/N: Poor Knuckles, a lamb to get slaughtered once more. Oh well, at least there's no Tails on hand this time with his trusty camera phone.


	3. Chapter 3 Hard Graft All Round

Chapter 3 – Hard Graft All Round.

A/N: The plot moves on, so see if, by the end of this chapter, you can answer this; what is that sneaky little foxboy up to? Is he out to disprove to everyone his relationship/crush on Cream? What do the reviewers think:

HHH – I have none of the systems necessary to play the Shadow game; I have a P.C – just my luck. Oh well, never mind; happy thoughts. Enjoy this chapter; we're about halfway through now (short but sweet story).

Ri2 – Don't worry, nothing as hectic as last time; even Thunderhawk's learn his lesson.

TH – More chapters for the Red Bull demon – keep her thirst sated or we're all doomed!

"I have to admit", Knuckles rubbed his head, not feeling any other ill effects save a mild headache following the marginal excess of the previous evening, "that went a lot better than I thought it would".

"And with any luck so will this" Thunderhawk answered as, finally, the lift into the hidden base of Haven juddered to a halt, allowing the two echidnas to exit into the hidden, ancestral home of the Brotherhood of Guardians. To Knuckles' surprise, there was no-one to greet them on arrival; his other grandfathers must have realised he was here, but apparently weren't concerned with the fact; _or at least they're not as concerned as they were last time Thunderhawk went out on one, and dragged me along with him._

For a split-second, the guardian grimaced as he knew he always would following remembrance of that now legendary drinking spree and, more importantly, the infamous picture that had resulted from the aftermath, beamed up for all to see following his wedding to Rouge. Compared to that mind-breaking bender, the previous night had been a model of restraint; they'd gotten to a local bar, ordered a few rounds and proceeded to get moderately tipsy, nothing more than that. His vision had blurred, but Knuckles was almost certain he remembered the walk back to Wynmacher's flat and how he had fallen asleep in one of his chairs, Vector laid out on the floor in front of him with his head resting on the guardian's shoes. He certainly remembered waking up again, how this time the light had been bearable and the pounding in his brain subsided after a glass of water; _what I wouldn't have given for it to do the same after my stag_. He and the other two revellers had, however, been left behind; Wyn had tacked a note to the back of his door stating that he'd gone to work, they could let themselves out when they were ready as long as they shut the door properly. And it had been that getting ready that had landed him where he was now.

After washing his face in cold water, the guardian had taken a long, hard look in the mirror and, seeing a familiar face, subtly different from his own in manner and appearance, looking back at him he had known today would be the day he buried this hatchet. Having told Vector to get to the shrine and tell the others he'd meet up with them later, Knuckles had travelled back to Haven with Thunderhawk, and as that journey now ran to its conclusion, the guardian knew it was time. Nodding at his sixth-father, Knuckles waited a few seconds before his voice breeched the silence,

"He's in his lab, where he's been for a while now", the older echidna turned to look his descendent in the eye, voice solemn as he asked sincerely, "are you sure you're ready for this?"

"I have to be; I want to hear it from his own mouth"; _and if he tries, or even inflects he wants to break this up_; Knuckles felt his fists clench almost against his will; _I'll nip it in the bud completely_. Seeing his look and knowing there would be no reasoning with the other echidna, Thunderhawk stepped forwards and beckoned,

"Very well then; I'll take you to him".

XXX

Locke heard the knock at the door to his hybrid laboratory/workshop, but failed to do register it for a few seconds; it didn't seem important to him, at least not as important as this new machine was. The beam prototype was nearly ready, but there were still a couple of teething troubles; it had a tendency to shut machinery off permanently and that could be lethal in the case of the more heavily augmented Legionnaires. He moved his hands over the dully shined metal again, trying to see what was wrong with his creation. _Maybe the power nodes are uncalibrated_; the scientist thought quietly to himself, logically dissecting the problem and putting the most likely cause first; _failing that, the refractory electromagnetic fields are out of sync, or…_; there was a second crash on his door, louder than the first this time and he couldn't ignore it. Swearing under his breath that if this was Athair, who seemed to take delight in interrupting him to ask pointless questions about how he was feeling, he would personally invent a stasis beam that would freeze him completely, Locke downed his tools and headed to greet his new visitor.

"Hello…Knuckles?" His eyes widened momentarily; he wasn't so cold that he couldn't get excited about a visit by his son, but the excitement died as he realised why the guardian was here, "please, come in".

"Thanks"; _he knows_; Knuckles couldn't just read it from Locke's eyes; the knowledge was seeping from every pore of his being, radiating from him in a mist of depressing fugue. Still, it was too late to back out now; with a determined set of his shoulders, he walked inside, headed to the nearest clean space he could find and pulled himself up to sit on the nearest workbench. Kicking his heels idly for a few moments, he watched as his father shut the door and began to head back to what he assumed was his latest pet project; it was only when Locke reached half way that he managed to pluck up the courage to speak,

"So", he looked around, not quite able to meet Locke's eye as the older echidna looked around at him, "how are things in this mad-house?"

"Cut to the chase Knuckles", the tone was firm but not unkind; the words of a Mobian who knows what's about to happen next will be painful and doesn't need it dragging out, "I know why you're here".

"Good, then you know the question?"

"I do", Locke gave a small, vicious smile, "and I will give you the same answer I gave my father; I will do nothing to oppose this union, because by trying to stop this wedding happening, I would only hurt Lara more. That's something I can never do again Knuckles, for my sake as well as your mothers". The guardian nodded, trying to stop himself, but there was no choice, he had to ask,

"You, still love…?"

"Now, and always", Locke assured him, seeming to become colder, yet more removed as he offered some advice to his son, "you will never know what I, or your mother, have been through; Rouge already knows what is expected of a guardian and her love for you is too great to be broken. You'll never live through it and I am grateful for that, but don't try to offer help for something you have no idea about".

The last words weren't a threat, they were a simple statement; in them, Knuckles saw a truth he couldn't deny. There was nothing he, or in fact any of the Brotherhood, could do here; as far as he was aware Locke was the first divorcee in recorded history for the guardians; _and now he has to sit and watch the woman he loves marry someone else_. A sudden, spiteful desire to say this was exactly what he deserved shot up; the guardian crushed it instantly, ashamed it had even occurred to him now, after he understood the situation Locke had found himself in. He had been a coward, but there had been a reason for it, at least in his own mind, and he had tried to make up for his own mistake even if it had cost him a wound that had never fully healed. Knuckles didn't exactly like Locke, but he had to respect him for doing what he had done to ease his former wife's suffering, letting her go quickly and without restraint. _And he's doing the same again now_; Knuckles couldn't help but credit that and, realising there was nothing he could say now, nodded in acquiescence,

"Okay, you made your point".

"Good", Locke turned back into his work, "I'm not sure if Thunderhawk said, but if Lara and Wynmacher are willing to accept them, give them my regards and congratulations".

"He mentioned; they did say thanks"; his father's back was to him now, but Knuckles saw his shoulder dip and, understanding himself to be dismissed, the guardian gently pushed himself back to the floor, took one last look at his father's hunched shoulders and posture, and silently departed. It may just have been his imagination, but he almost thought he heard a muffled crash through the closed door, a sound not altogether unlike a thin metal bar being hammered into the edge of a heavy wooden desk.

XXX

_So then_; he'd had the news, but it left him with a poser of a problem; Tails considered it on the way back from his latest excursion; having just dropped off the passengers he'd shuttled down of a day-long trip to Station Square, Tails fiddled absently with the pocket that housed his mobile phone, still not sure what he was supposed to do now. Having just spoken with Lara again, the news delicious again, ensuring it was a summer wedding just as Mighty had predicted, the fox was left in a bit of a quandary; _what the hell can I get them as a wedding present?_

It had been a poser that had dogged him all day; Lara had been very quick to impose a strict limit that all she and Wyn wanted from everyone was something to help with the reception; their combined budget wasn't large, they were having to save up to go on a delayed holiday come the winter, but they didn't want anything big to mark the occasion – in Wynmacher's colourful jargon; just something to help the day go with a bang. _But I need to give them something special_; the fox ground his teeth, thinking over every time Lara had offered to help him, every time Wyn had helped cook up something delicious despite just having had a full day at work, the good food always banishing the hunger that affected him after flying too long. So he was stuck; he wanted to give them a present they'd never forget just after their wedding, but what could he give that would be really, really memorable?

He tried to think back to what had happened earlier in the year, when his two other friends had tied the knot, but that wasn't too much help; aside from bribery material to last a lifetime from Rouge and a coronary for Knuckles, he hadn't really done much there; the Brotherhood had footed the bill and anyway the two guardians couldn't have too much because of the life they led. _But Lara and Wyn are both normal_; Tails bumped his head on the steering wheel gently, frustrated as his normally sharp mind was blunted on this virtually impenetrable issue; _what would a normal couple want?_

The problem occupied him until he was coming in to land when, finally, his thoughts and ideas forced the breach; he virtually seized up, every molecule in his body going completely rigid, his fur standing on end as it hit him; a way to say thank you for everything they'd done for him and make sure the reception went with a really, really big bang. The Tornado lurched up into the air, almost a loop-de-loop as Tails had to slew his vehicle around to come in for another pass; he'd overshot the landing in this time in his sudden revelation. There was only one thing he needed to check and he needed to do it quickly.

_Right, got it_; cutting the connection, the fox stood up straight, crossing the room to his calendar, counting the days between now and the one day he'd highlighted in red with yellow stars surrounding it; he had about two months, and that wasn't long at all with the target he'd set himself. But he could do it, and would do it; come hell or high water, as he remembered both the fiancés saying the same words, Tails made that solemn promise and almost immediately began acting on it; _I've got some phone calls to make, some extra orders to do…_; his eyes fell on a date not three days away and a small jab of disappointment touched his heart; _…and sadly, someone to let down for a while_.

XXX

"Thank you sir, see you again"; Amy watched as the customer disappeared with a wave, then hopped back off her box, stretching her legs with a groan. Wriggling her toes, she looked up at her co-worker and complained,

"If I'm up there much longer I'll have lattices on my feet by the time today's out". The human looked at her and quietly laughed, reaching down to pat her patronisingly on her head quills; she grabbed his hand with both of hers and shook her head,

"Don't even think about it Simon".

"Too late", checking the shop floor was clear, he gave her a nod; seeing this, Amy began to walk slowly up and down the aisle behind the counters they both worked, feeling pins and needles as the blood returned to her legs now they were moving rather than standing still. With a sigh, she jumped back onto the box her job provided for her to see into the shop she worked for, letting Simon, or Si when he wasn't in the dog house, do likewise to give his legs a bit of a stretch.

"Always the same n Fridays Ames", she gave him a sidelong glance from the corner of her eye, listening as he continued, "busy for ages, but it goes quick; look at the time".

"Don't", one of her pet superstitions rose to the fore as she consciously averted her eyes from the wall behind her, "I never look at the clock if I can help it; seeing the time makes it go a lot slower".

"You and your beliefs hedgie".

"Says the man who wants to write a book about how to cheat the boss at work". A finger flicked one of her ears softly and she batted at it, turning to see Si wave a finger at her,

"I'd never cheat Chocky as long as I live, you know that Ames". She nodded and smiled, pushing his gently in the shoulder,

"Ah, you know what I meant".

"Sadly I normally do".

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Your sister's over there". _That made absolutely no sense_; Amy furrowed her brow but for the life of her couldn't see where he was going with this, going with her gut feeling as she tried to make sense of it,

"Don't change the subject".

"No, no, look", Si pointed past her till, out the window of the Quick Stop Shop, "isn't that her chao, Cheese?" Amy craned her neck to lean over the counter and see a blue chao with a red bow tie flitting along and more importantly the small rabbit walking along underneath him. _Wonder what Cream's doing here?_; she looked at her friend,

"Si, gimme five"; when she'd rubbed her shoulder from the gentle punch that had tapped her shoulder, the pink hedgehog smiled sarcastically, "minutes off you lummox; I just want to say hi".

"Go on then, but be quick; this place can fill up like nobody's business when you're not looking". Without another word, Amy was gone, ducking under the entrance to the back of the tills without opening it and rushing outside; thankfully with Cheese as a marker, she couldn't miss the younger rabbit in the press,

"Cream", she dodged past a couple as Cream turned to see her, "what are you doing here?"

"Oh sorry Rosie", the rabbit looked up at the store Amy had just emerged from, "I forgot you worked there; I should have popped in".

"Don't worry, half the time I forget I work there as well; the number of phone calls I get saying I should have been in work ten minutes ago"; _something's not right here_; it had been a bad joke, but it should have been enough to get Cream to smile. Now she looked at her younger sister, Amy became more concerned at the faraway look in her eye and frown on her lips. Pressed for time, Amy took the bull by the horns,

"You feeling alright Bun?" The rabbit glared up for a second, reminded of her less than pleasant former nickname but being Cream just couldn't hold it; the glare softened to a downcast, longing gaze as she sighed,

"Yeah, I just want to be…forget it, it's not much".

"Cream", she looked up to see her older sister smiling at her, an eyebrow raised in gentle mockery, "lesson one if you want to get away with something; never tell anyone to forget about it 'cause they won't. It's not nothing, I can tell that from your face and the way your twisting your ear around your hand", the rabbit gaped and went red, trying to stop what she considered a girlish habit as Amy chuckled and finished, "now out with it, or am I going to have to…?"

"Mercy", Cream sprang back as Cheese squeaked, dropping into Amy's vision from above and interposing himself between the two Mobians like the world's smallest bodyguard; Cream gave him a gentle stroke before sighing, "well, it's just, I'd rather be flying than shopping".

_Huh_; the rabbit must have seen the confusion in her face as she elaborated,

"Well, I go flying, in the Tornado, training"; _right, with you now_; "well that's supposed to be every Friday night, but I got a call from Tails a few weeks ago saying he'd have to cancel for a while; said something about getting really busy and having to work late. I just miss it, the flying I mean; I want to be a pilot now".

"I see", that got the cogs turning, though Amy knew right now she had to get back to work; all she could do was reassure her little sister, so she slapped on a friendly smile and spoke comfortingly, "well don't worry; Tails has been busy recently, he's spoken to a lot of us, saying he's not going to be around so much, but he said it wasn't going to be for long, he hoped so anyway. Don't think about it; he likes you really"; Cream swatted the hedgehog as she scowled and made to speak; Amy beat her to it,

"I know; nothing's going on; listen, I gotta go – give Vanilla my regards and I'll see you soon".

"Okay, bye Rosie". The rabbit waved off her sister before resuming her journey to the pet shop, Cheese ahead of her, desperate to get his hands on the chao treats awaiting him there. Luckily, neither rabbit nor chao could see the thoughts running through Amy' mind as she retook her place at the cash register.

_Tails has been hard to get hold of recently_; she rummaged through the drawers, pretending the change was hard to get hold to buy a few extra seconds of thinking time; _haven't seen him around for a while, he couldn't get to the last night in we all had – mind you_; she smiled as she handed the customer his change, looking away and faking a coughing fit to disguise the mirth that had arisen when Sonic and Shadow had seen the movie she'd brought with her; _those two probably wished they were with him when they saw it – I did say Bridget Jones was a chick flick but would they believe me?_

Amy truly meant to carry out her promise; it wasn't in her good, caring soul to lie, but from the second she got back behind the counter the rest of the day was an absolute blur of serving frantically, remembering manners at the last minute and just time for a frenzied spot of cleaning at the very end. She was dead beat by the time she arrived back at her apartment, barely able to slam something in the cooker and get to bed, never mind recall a single conversation in a day packed with activity. So it was she failed to confront Tails about his errant plans for her sister, a blessing in disguise for, had she done so, her naturally remorseless demeanour would have been sure to grind the truth from him, and all his hard work may have counted for naught.

XXX

Lara looked up from the notes she'd been scribbling, thankful to her future husband as he pushed a cupful of something steaming and scented towards her; with a grateful sigh she leant back in her chair, free for a few minutes of the mind-numbing tedium of the facts and figures she was resolutely ploughing through. As she took a first sip, she cast her eye down on the working out she'd done so far; _more than I'd expected, but at least we're over half way there_. Trying to combine their finances now, rather than after their big day, was a massive issue that they'd been trying to get over for the past two weeks in their spare time, but at least now it was finally coming together. As far as she could make out, both she and Wyn would be able to put money into the joint account, but on his insistence only she would be able to take money out.

She looked up as Wyn sat down opposite her, smiling the smile she'd fallen in love with, and it was love, a true love she thought she'd lost following her son being ripped from her and abandoned in the wilderness. That last clause had been a stroke of genius on his part; he freely admitted finances weren't his thing, so he left that side of the business in Lara's much more capable hands. She couldn't help but agree with this, even if she'd had to slap him upside the head when he'd said that going by his logic the kitchen was off-limits to her.

"Going all right Lara? You've been at it like a train these past few nights".

"And now the train needs more oil in the boiler", she threw back a mouthful, feeling the hot liquid melt its way warmingly into her stomach, "and that just hit the spot; Wyn, no matter that you can't do facts and figures to save your life, you're the best damn tea maker this side of Echidnopolis".

"And proud of it", the brown echidna put a patriotical expression on and slapped his chest with a free hand before seeing the hated numbers once more, "still, get this done now and tomorrow, the world's our oyster".

"Well, Echidnopolis at least". Wyn raised his eyebrow; _at last, savour the moment I catch out Ms Organisation_;

"No, the whole world", he corrected her, wagging a finger as she made to contradict him, smile broadening as he pointed out, "we've got the prospect of a free lift anywhere come tomorrow morning".

"Ahh", the penny dropped for her, "nice idea, but you're still wrong I'm afraid"; _no way_; Wyn's jaw dropped as Lara refrained from smirking with very great difficulty, "Mighty's got him this weekend; she's going to visit her boyfriend's family and needs the lift doesn't she?"

"Is that this weekend?" His eyes flicked to the calendar, "thought it was next".

"Nah, this is the one; she was a bundle of nerves when I saw her last", Lara chuckled, the sight of a Mobian she knew from experience could tackle pretty much anyone under the sun on even footing going virtually to pieces in her desperation to make a good impression on people she'd never met before funny even now, "she really wants to get this right".

"She will, and anyway, if Big's family are anything like he is it'll take something like her smashing up their house to take offence; never met anyone more sweet-tempered, save maybe Cream".

"Didn't know you'd met Big?" Wyn shook his head, brown dreadlocks swaying,

"Saw him at the big do didn't I – that's where I got the recipe for those fish rolls I treated you to a few days back". Lara blinked before the scene came back to her, jogging her memory,

"Course, sorry I forgot; oh Wyn", on impulse, excitement and longing tearing through her, Lara reached over, gently grabbing his arms as her breath came quick and fast, "soon, that'll be us, up there, getting married".

"I know, and I can't wait either", slowly, his eyes never leaving her beautiful face, the chef carefully rotated her grip, moving so her hand was held loosely in his as he spoke the most sincere words he had ever uttered, "I love you Lara-Le".

The words sent a thrill down her spine; somehow she couldn't take it in no matter how many times he said it, every time one to be long cherished in the memory. Her face softened even as he grip became firmer, more supportive as she whispered back,

"And I you Wynmacher, now and forever". Slowly, without words for they were meaningless in the face of so much overt emotion, both fiancés embraced, love filling each of them as the hold lasted. It was an endless time that came to a close only when they wished it to, when Lara allowed the numbers to become part of her life once again and descend back to Angel Island to finish them. Silently, with positive emotions dancing in the evening air around them, both echidnas quietly, diligently loved and worked for each other.

XXX

When the knock came, as both had known it would, Lara was the first to react; jerking her pen to the door, she asked quickly,

"Would you mind; the answer's right in front of me"; without a word Wyn was up and heading for the front door. She knew it was coming even as she scribed the next sequence of numbers and still she couldn't help but smile as he called back to her,

"Lara, look lively, your toy-boy's paying you a visit"; _typical flattery – as if I could get a toy-boy…_; "Tails?"

She put the pen down, registering the concern in the other echidna's voice and reacting to it without conscious input; she had grown attached to the fox in question, respected his talent for being who he was and, despite or possibly because of the fact she'd never known her own son, to a small degree sought to nurture him a little. Knuckles had told her the story he knew about Sonic and Tails; on hearing it she'd revaluated her ideas about the blue hedgehog – raising a child alone was hard enough, but saving the world as well, constantly with one eye on him and one eye on your possible demise? _That took some doing_; she lifted herself out her seat and headed for the front door, face grim as she considered what it might possibly be to make Wyn sound concerned; _and, while he's on Angel Island at least, I can do a bit to help._ With this thought in mind, she poked her head around the door and gasped in motherly concern.

Tails, at least to her eyes, looked a shadow of his former self; though there was little wrong with him physically that she could see, some sixth-sense demanded that she pay attention. He seemed smaller somehow, lacking the boundless energy, the excitement that normally had him greeting and talking to everyone; without it, the young fox seemed listless and dull. _Probably just the tiredness_; there was no denying the fact he looked like he could use a good forty winks, there were bags under his red-rimmed eyes and it didn't look like he could stop yawning; _cup of tea and an early night for you my lad_.

"Hello Tails", she stepped forwards as Wyn stepped back, letting the fox in, "feeling a bit under the weather?" He gave a haggard smile, weariness lining every inch of it,

"You have no idea; no, don't", he backed up, waving her away frantically as she sought to get a little closer, "don't want you to get it".

"Unclean", Wyn crossed his fingers, terror in his manner as Tails managed to look disdainful, "unclean!"

"You crack me up"; Tails wasn't normally a good liar, but just this once he didn't really need to be; he really was feeling tired and the exhaustion seemed to help him here – Lara couldn't read his face and body as well as she normally did and she seemed to believe his story. She moved closer, sizing him up with a practised nurse's eye, lips pursed,

"Hmm, how long have you been like this?"

"Just a few days"; _that was when the late nights started catching up with me_; "think there's some kind of bug going around; just get on with it, pretend it's not a big thing, it'll go away".

"Good philosophy", Wyn commented breezily even as he motioned to Lara with his eyes, "but there's nothing a strong brew can't help you cure". Lara flicked the kettle on as Tails slouched into the kitchen; just looking at him now made her feel tired, like he was a desert that was leeching away the comforting moisture of her vitality. As he flumped down, Wyn inconspicuously sidled into the background, checking the spare bed was made up and everything was ready; it looked like Tails would be needing it earlier than they'd expected.

"Here you go kid, get this down you"; his drooping ears perked up at her voice and he quite literally woke up and smelt the coffee. As he took his first sip, Lara regarded him more closely, trying to size up the symptoms, but they didn't quite make sense; if it had been flu, she'd be looking for a headache and sore throat as well as general lethargy, but at the same time a common cold shouldn't knock you out like this. _Unless it's a virulent strain_; she banished the pessimistic thought like smoke on the wind, speaking confidently,

"Just finish that, then you best turn in Tails".

"Or turn up my toes", he managed the weak joke, looking at her with eyelids half-shut, "believe me it's been tempting". A sudden fear tingled her sense of danger and she leant forwards,

"How did you fly the Tornado?"

"Autopilot is a wonderful thing; all I had to do was land, and I've done it so often its seco…second natahhhaa, 'scuse me"; he pardoned himself following the massive yawn as Lara cocked her head,

"You take it easy all right? You got a flight tomorrow, that's the only one right?" He nodded, not lying intentionally this time as he hadn't heard the question, merely finishing the top half of his cup of tea as she sat back, not entirely satisfied, but enough to be getting on with as Wyn gave her the nod from the doorway. The second the last drop was drained, the echidna lady scooped up the mug and pointed him in the direction of the bathroom,

"Right, brush your teeth, then bed, get it?"

"Thanks", he managed to mumble in response and slipped off the stool, swaying with tiredness before managing to catch himself and tottering unsteadily up the hallway, Wyn squeezing himself into the wall to the half-asleep fox past. The brown echidna raised his eyes as he sat down,

"Looks a mite rough".

"I know", she listened for the sound of the tap being turned on, "looks like this hasn't been his first late night of late; I hope he's not overdoing anything". Wyn shook his head,

"He's a sensible kid, he probably knows what he's doing".

"I hope so; I'll just get him settled down".

"You really like him don't you?" The question wasn't an accusation and as such, Lara had no reason to get defensive,

"Yeah, I do, but for the life of me I can't think why; I've got Knuckles again, but now he's a married man, like there wasn't any time for me. Tails…"

"Will appreciate what you're doing", Wyn finished for her, smiling as he watched her stand up, "you're being sensible with it, so's he by the looks of things; just as long as you carry on like you are, I reckon you'll both be fine". Lara smiled, running a hand down one of his dreadlocks as she moved past, her thanks for the reassurance as she moved into the hall.

She had wanted to wish her guest a good night, but for that she was too late; his head must have barely touched the pillow and he was long gone, sleeping like a baby. Lara gave a suppressed giggle as Tails lay on the bed, virtually comatose in his deep slumber, not even stirring as she sat on the side of his bed, resisting the urge to lean down and plant a kiss on his brow, settling instead for gently stroking the fur on his head.

"Goodnight kid" she whispered into the darkness before quietly standing up and moving softly out the room, her eyes on the sleeping fox until, with all the noise of a falling leaf in winter, she let the door slip into place behind her.

"No, forget it", her expression gave that away as false, the giggle brewing there belying her words as she saw the look on Wyn's face, "we've got a guest".

"He won't hear a thing", the brown echidna assured her, the spark in his eye one she'd seen before on a couple of memorable occasions, "it'd take a bomb in each ear-hole to get him awake now". She took a pace back even though deep down she didn't really want to, feeling the wall scrape her heel as she raised her hand,

"We're not married yet". He had an answer for everything,

"Never stopped us before"; _but so do I_;

"We weren't fiancés then", though true, the comment had about the same effect on stopping Wyn as tissue paper did on deflecting a bullet; Lara couldn't, didn't really try to resist as he wrapped his arms around her,

"Right, you've got to the count of five to give me one good reason why not"; it was as she was trying to think that he moved, his lips finding a spot just underneath where he jawbone met her ear and nibbling gently. She was a sucker for that little spot; her mind just went to mush and she bent her neck the other way, burning through the count in seconds. Wyn utilised the muscles in his arms, legacy of his sky-ball days, to sweep her up off her feet and carry her towards the other bedroom.

"Old romantic at heart?" He glanced down at the question, smiling,

"At heart, and pretty much everywhere else as well"; Lara's answering laugh was shut off as he pushed the bedroom door to with his foot.

A/N: Sorry, K+ fic; nothing further than that!


	4. Chapter 4 Good Deeds and Stories

Chapter 4 – Good Deeds and Stories.

A/N: Sorry, long chapter and work makes fics take longer. Still, I hope this chapter goes down all right with you guys:

HHH – That little scene's all about grossing Sonic out – if you read the bit just before that snippet, you'll realise Sonic's just verbally digging at the future couple and that's just their way of getting back at him. And speaking of the eight-son of Spectre, well all I will sya is watch this space.

Ri2 – Adopting Tails – he's a bit independent for that despite his age, and he's got a sort of family already. Mind you, read on and you might see more support for your idea…

TH – Cold weather getting to you huh? Well relax; this chapter has something that will banish all your cold worries right away.

As he came to, Wynmacher knew instinctively where he was and who he was with; as the realisation sank in, he knew he couldn't have been happier. Lara was still asleep, dreaming peacefully as he carefully reached over, planting a kiss on hr cheek without disturbing her rest; she didn't stir as he kicked his legs out of bed and looked around, locating his scattered clothing and seeking to put it on where it belonged; as he was doing so, he caught a look at the clock and his eyebrows raised; _that tiredness bug must have been contagious_. Still, it was a weekend, it didn't matter that it was much later than normal; the chef reached for his shoes and fitted them on, already thinking about what he could do for breakfast.

There was no sound in the world sweeter than freshly boiling oil; Wyn quickly lifted the frying pan and swirled the contents, ensuring an even spread around the bottom to make sure the kippers wouldn't stick when he added them. He had toyed with the idea of adding a bit of bread as well, but no, the flour might impair the flavour and stick to the fish; he'd have to add that at the finish. For now, all he added were the two kippers – he knew Tails was here and would doubtless want something to eat before he left to pick up Mighty; _but after last night_; Wyn frowned, more perturbed than he'd let on by the fox's ailment; _he'll probably be needing it later than we will._ Shrugging for a second, remembering that Lara had said it wasn't anything too serious and that of all Mobians here she'd have by far the better judgement, the chef merely shrugged and got back to what he did best.

He heard footsteps behind him, fortuitously just as the tomatoes were reaching their perfect colour to show they were fried to perfection,

"Impeccable timing as always Lara". He turned, flipping one of the cooked fish onto a plate as his partner took an appreciative sniff, eyes brightening as she did so,

"Umm, do I smell kippers?"

"You sure do", he assured her, winking as he moved back to the table, both hands full with plates of a delicious fry-up; Lara licked her lips as she raided the drawers for knives and forks,

"Just the thing for a weekend, but not too many of them you", Wyn tried to look cute as she waved a finger, fighting to keep her smile hidden, "you're leading me into bad habits; I need to watch my waistline". He raised an eyebrow,

"Nah, I've been watching it and", Lara cocked her head, arms folded as he pretended to scrutinise her midsection, "nah, all looking good there".

"Creep".

"What's that mean?"

"Oh, sorry", she apologised for the confusion; Wyn had obviously never heard the expression before, "means you're a flatterer; Rouge calls my son it occasionally, just a friendly insult".

"Lands below huh?" The brown echidna chuckled as she nodded, eyes wistful as he set down their meals, "love to visit there someday".

"As you keep saying, and as I do as well more's the point", Lara added; that was certainly true; she and Wyn both shared that desire among others, both wanted to get to the lands below and generally have a nose around. Lara knew that, if she'd asked, Tails would have been only too happy to get both her and her future husband there, but she couldn't, it wouldn't be fair to expect that from him. As it was, she and Wyn had plans to go there legitimately and were putting away for it in the future, the fund growing month by month; there would be a wait, but she was sure it would be worth it in the end.

The knock came as they were halfway through the meal; Lara paused, fork halfway to her mouth as the noise echoed around her home, looking up to see Wyn looking equally nonplussed. Gesturing for him to sit down, the echidna lady stood and moved to the front door, unlatching it as she tried to quickly think who would call at this early hour on a Saturday. The last bolt slid free and, with a tug, Lara looked out to see the answer stood right on her doorstep. Her eyes widened in surprise,

"Mighty?" She asked of the armadillo standing there, nodding at the mention of her name, "what are you doing here?"

"Sorry to call on you like this Lara", the other Mobian began apologetically, a little abashed as she spoke and looked up, eyes half-shadowed by her overhanging shell, "but have you seen Tails around at all?" The mention of the fox made the pieces click together as, with a 'oh' of understanding, Lara nodded and smiled,

"Oh, yes sorry Mighty; please come in", the armadillo stepped inside, rubbing her shoes on the mat as Lara continued her explanations, "unfortunately we've all slept in a bit, but Tails wasn't feeling very well last night; he came in half-dead and pretty much dropped off the second his head touched the pillow. I forgot he was supposed to pick you up today, I should have rung".

"Don't worry about it; Big never specifies a time; I just try to get there early – if he's not up to scratch, we can just go a bit slower, that's all", the armadillo agreed gregariously as she took off her shoes and placed them neatly by the front door; as she straightened, her tone suddenly became a little more firm, laced with a very subtle weave of mischief, "what, er, any idea what it is?"

"Probably a cold, but it's really knocked him for six".

"Fantastic", Mighty suddenly realised how awful that must have sounded and hastily made to correct herself, "well, not the cold, but I mean I've got a cure, old homemade remedy that'll get rid of it".

"A cure for the cold", Lara's eyes widened, she stroked her chin with one hand, wondering of the possibilities, "you market that you'll be an overnight millionaire". Mighty shook her head,

"Nah, it, well, you have really see it in action to understand how it works. Got any hickory nuts?" As Lara nodded and headed for the kitchen, she failed to see the evil smirk that, just for a second, flashed across Mighty's face.

XXX

He was still so sleepy; he was sure his eyelids didn't really want to open but for some reason they did anyway, letting light flood his eyes and wake him up as it always did. Tails stifled a groan, reaching up to rub his eyes clear of what conservatively felt like a lorry-load of grit and sleep dust, stretching his body as he felt the blanket slough away. _Man, I'm still tired_; that was true – compared to last night he was the picture of vitality, but he could still feel the lingering hand of weakness permeating his body, stroking his mind; it took a conscious effort and a good gritting of his teeth to exorcise that ghost, reminding himself it would all be worth it just for the look on her face. Slowly dragging himself out from under the covers, the fox shook his head muggily; he was sure he was supposed to be somewhere now, but could he remember where it was, or what he was meant to be doing? _Well, I'm not going to find out sat down here_; he sat on the end of the bed, waiting for the dizziness from sitting up so fast to subside as he reached for his shoes with his foot, stretching for them as he attempted to bully his memory back into shape and recall why he was here on Angel Island in the first place? Still it didn't work and he was forced to admit defeat; standing up with a last long yawn, he headed for the bedroom door with a logical thought in his mind; _maybe Lara knows?_

XXX

They had been polite enough not to inquire about the concoction Mighty was now brewing up on the cooker, in fact they'd been impressed into silence by the way she was breaking open the hickory nuts with her bare hands and crumbling the whole sundered product, shell and all, into the saucepan, all the while humming a merry tune. However, when the odour began to slide across the kitchen, a combination of bad eggs smothered in curdled milk, the other two occupants of the kitchen were driven to act by desperation if nothing else. Just about avoiding turning a light green colour, Lara rushed to open every window she could see as Wyn buried his nose in his sleeve, choking through the fabric at the seemingly immune armadillo,

"Mighty what is that; you can't give that to anyone as a cure, you'll kill them". She turned to look at him, smiling all the while even if she never stopped her continual stirring,

"My mum calls it hickory nut vinegar, and believe me it can cure pretty much anything – I really would hate to see the disease that managed to beat this. Ah, there's our willing volunteer now". She waved as though she hadn't a care in the world; both echidnas turned just in time to see Tails double over as the smell clouted him square in the sensitive nose.

XXX

He had meant to say sorry, having now had definite proof of just what it was he'd forgotten as she was standing in the hallway waiting for him. He'd gone red, embarrassed that he'd forgotten his promise to pick her up early and drawn in a breath to apologise. Unfortunately, he'd taken that breath in through his snout.

_What the…?_; he reeled as though the Mobian stirring the pot had slapped him – he'd thought nothing could have beaten Sonic's breath following his part in Knuckles' stag night, but whatever was in that pot did it by a distance. Tears formed in his eyes, both hands plugging his nostrils in a desperate attempt to dislodge the ferocious reek; he spun on his heel, both tails twirling like mad to drive the foul stench away from him as he risked a shallow breath through the mouth,

"Whatever it is get rid of it; I can't share a kitchen with that".

"Hi Tails", the disembodied voice floated over to him, "heard you weren't feeling well last night".

"I was better than I am now; just flush that stuff down the drain, it's making me light-headed"; _true_; Mighty looked down at the concealed dose she held; _makes your head light and your stomach like a rock – oh well, it worked for me_.

"Don't worry, it's not going to be here long", she darted forwards, one hand grabbing his shoulder and spinning him; his mouth was open in an attempt to reprimand her, voice his shock and outrage; just the opening she needed, "open wide!"

XXX

Both Lara-Le and Wynmacher winced in unison as they saw the armadillo ram the spoon of the thick, black liquid, resembling treacle more than anything else, down Tail's open jaws, the hand that had turned him around now flashing down to clamp his muzzle shut, the spoon protruding like a lolly stick. Lara felt her heart strings strained as the foxboy's eyes shot wide and he began what looked like convulsions; she was about to intervene, half-standing when Mighty suddenly let go; with a clatter Tails spat the spoon out and clasped both hands to his violated orifice,

"Quick, brush your teeth now or the taste'll stay there all day"; the fox didn't need to be told twice; spinning on his heel he raced back into the hall; as Mighty sat down at the table the sound of frantic scrubbing and gargling from the bathroom was all that could be heard. Wynmacher stood, eyes hard as he demanded an explanation,

"What the hell was that; that wasn't a cure, it was torture".

"Patience; that was phase one", Mighty placated him, raising a hand for calm in the face of disbelief, "believe me, when he steps foot in this room again, it'll have worked its magic".

"It better had", Lara promised, pointing at the stove where the malevolent gloop still simmered dangerously, "or I'll have you licking that bowl clean for making him eat that". Strangely the armadillo didn't seem concerned, secure in the knowledge of her home-made remedy.

XXX

_Yuck, yuck, eeeewww!_; he'd brushed until his gums nearly bled but he could still taste that toxic sludge, a poisonous ghost now haunting his dental cavity as he gargled with fresh water again, trying to make his mouth feel less abused. The taste was so awful it went beyond describable; all he knew was that Mighty would have to pay for that, and pay big style. Stashing his toothbrush back into the bath roll he'd hung on the back of the bathroom door, the fox shook his head one last time, airing his stinging tongue as he made to re-enter the kitchen.

XXX

Mighty pricked her ears and fought hard to keep her face straight; the two echidnas heard her whisper,

"Phase two", under her breath before she turned to see Tails standing in the kitchen entrance again, glaring daggers at her. Using most of her resolve to avoid laughing, she affected a look of concern, scrutinising him closely,

"Hmm, you still look a little rough", she stood up, the younger Mobain's look of disgust turning to horror as he saw where she was headed, "maybe you need another spoonful, or a bit…?"

"No! Believe me", Tails had leapt back a good five feet and was waving his hands frantically, trying to ward her off; _never again, never ever again_; "I'm cured, I feel a hundred and ten percent, fit as a butcher's dog. Listen, I'll get packed and then we'll go, that okay?"

"Yeah, no rush though"; Mighty, Lara and Wyn held it in just long enough for a pair of bushy tails to disappear down the hallway before they each dissolved into sniggering fits. Lara looked up and pointed, scowling even if she was heaving with laughter,

"You are a cruel Mobain Michelle Armadillo".

"It works though, can't deny that".

"No, but the smell alone would have done it", Wyn wiped his eyes on his gloves, looking at the saucepan with new respect, "so that's how hickory nut vinegar does the job then?"

"Yeah, it is actually very good for you, all the nutrients of the nuts are in it and will help fight off pretty much anything, but it's also why I hate hickory nuts; mum made one bottle when I was ill and said I wanted a day off school, first time. One spoonful, then she put the rest in a jar; every time I felt a bit pickley, I looked at the jar and thought of so many things I'd rather have, you know, Ebola, the Black Death, than the vinegar, when I looked away I was cured. Been in the family for years now, but never bettered".

"Hmm, harsh but fair", Lara had to hold her hands up, impressed at the folk medicine, "you'd have a hell of a job getting it past the medical board though".

"Armadillo logic", Mighty tapped the shell covering her head, "if it works, use it; if it doesn't, use something better". Wyn thought for a second, opened him mouth, closed it, thought again before shaking his head in defeat,

"Not a lot you can really say to that. For now though", he stood up, eyeing the pan with distaste and sidling up to it as though what lay inside could have reared up and bitten him, "the hickory nut vinegar's getting a decent burial", he gingerly picked it up by the very tip of the handle and turned on the tap with his other hand, "at sea".

XXX

Rather unsurprisingly, the flight back to Mystic Ruins, or at least the first half of it, was rather quiet, Tails occasionally shooting murderous glances at the Mobian sat next to him while she tried to look apologetic at the same time as try not to grin. However, there was something on her mind, and at just past the half-way point, it just broke free from her,

"Tails?"

"What?" There was enough disgust in that single word to stop nearly any inquiry, but Mighty had to push forwards,

"Why have you been so tired recently?" She carried on rapidly as he turned to look at her, a quick-fire answer on his lips, "we all saw it a little while back, when you were giving Vec his new batteries, you looked under the weather then. But it's just got worse; Sonic's starting to get concerned because you're hardly ever home, I reckon he thinks you're letting your work get on top of you. He does…"

"I know", Tails didn't need to hear any more; he'd known this would be coming and, truth be told, better Mighty than anyone he knew in Station Square, "and I'm grateful he gives a damn, but, well, truth be told I have been overdoing it a bit, but there's a reason for it, and a good one".

"Oh really", the armadillo put her hands in her lap, tapping her thumbs together as she asked, "don't suppose there's any chance you telling me about it?"

"Not really, no".

"Remembering of course that I have a direct link to your brother and can let him know the existence of this secret at any time?" Tails snapped his head around to see Mighty grinning broadly, her phone in her hand as he tried to act casual, keep up the act,

"You wouldn't, would you?"

"I might", she laughed, tapping his shoulder gently, "tell you what; get it off your chest to me, and I swear I won't tell anyone else; you need to tell someone or they'll just get nosy". Tails considered that statement and, almost immediately, his massive IQ had seen a way to throw virtually everyone off the scent,

"Good idea"; _really?_; Mighty hadn't actually been expecting him to agree – she'd never have told Sonic, if only because she could irritate him with it later, "yeah, if I tell you, you can let them all know there's a reason why I'm stopping out – they'll never believe me if I say it to their faces. All right then", he smiled slightly, beckoning her forwards; she was halfway down when he suddenly held up a hand,

"One more thing; laugh and I'll hit the eject button, got it?"

"Implicitly"; with that promise, she leant the rest of the way, allowing the smaller fox to crane his neck and whisper into her ear. What she heard took a second to digest, and another second to verify,

"Really?" The fox nodded, "are you absolutely serious?" He nodded again and Mighty had to laugh, just a little, as she threw an arm around his shoulder,

"You little sweetheart; that's the cutest thing I've ever heard", Tails gave an embarrassed grin as his cheeks went pink, "how much longer you gotta do this for?"

"Only another two weeks, maybe two and a half; it'll be worth it though"; _yeah_; for a second he fondly imagined the picture in his head; _really worth it_. Mighty, who didn't know he was only giving her the partial truth, offered some assurance,

"Well I'll get the word to Sonic; I promise I won't say what you're planning – that's just gold Tails, there's a Romeo in you yet kid".

"Yeah well, just need the conformation and that'll be that. Anyway, enough of that", he glossed over the topic before she could read any further into it, "I've got to get you to your boyfriend's and we're running late; better think of ways to save time". Mighty saw the sudden evil glint that lit up his eye and quashed it, even her iron nerves quailing at the thought of a repeat exposure of that.

"Roll out and when I get out I'll put your lights out, got it?" The foxboy gulped at her clenched fists,

"Every word".

XXX

Everyone has their vices, even a hero; for Sonic, the main vice took the form of Saturday mornings. If at all possible, he avoided getting up on a Saturday morning at all, just lazing in bed and enjoying the sensation of immobility, a dramatic change from the constant motion he otherwise lived in. This morning was no different; by strategic planning, he'd put his phone within easy reach of his bed and therefore, when it started buzzing, he was able to scoop it up and answer without leaving the comforting confines of his bed,

"Yo, talk to me".

"Hey Smurf"; his eyes narrowed as he recognised the voice,

"Ah, shelly", he licked his lips, the revenge for letting his nickname slip all planned out and read to be put into production, "yes, I owe you one for that; telling Knuckles was the second worst thing you could have done". There was a giggle from the other end of the line,

"So what was the first?"

"If you'd have told Rouge".

"Figures", she shook herself, recalling the reason she was even talking to him now, "anyway, listen, I'm phoning about Tails", Sonic sat up, the blanket falling away partly as his interest was piqued, "had a chat with him on the Tornado, and all I can say, my words not his, is don't worry; he's working overtime because there's a very good reason for it".

"Like?"

"Sorry, my lips are sealed. Just believe me, he knows what he's doing, trust me".

"Mich old friend, I trust you as far as you could throw me, you know that", it was true; Sonic did set store by one of his oldest friends even if they did continually needle each other; the reassurance from her about his brother's recent behaviour was comforting and helped set his mind at ease, "but I'm still going to get you for spreading the ancient name around".

"You never said I couldn't".

"I also never said you could".

"Ah well, it was a fifty-fifty and I got it wrong". The hedgehog smiled slyly as he caught her out again,

"It could have been ninety-nine to one and you'd still have got it wrong", the smile blossomed into a grin as he heard her disgruntled hiss, "but listen, you're with Big now aren't you?"

"Not yet, just on the outskirts of the swamp; there's no reception in there".

"Right, well have a good weekend okay? You'll go down a storm with his family I'm sure".

"Cheers for the vote of confidence", both old friends laughed before Mighty rang off with a cheerful, "see you around Sonic".

XXX

It was two weeks to the day after the conversation with Mighty when it happened; Tails woke up in his own bed, made to get up, had one shoe half on when it hit him like a wave of sweet relief. He flopped back onto the covers, letting all the tension seep from him slowly; he gave it all the time it needed for this was his first real day off in a month and a half. He just relaxed, concentrating on his breathing, wondering why you always took your free time for granted until you actually lost it; after nearly six weeks of virtually constant work, he was sure he'd never let a second of it go to waste again. As he lay there, eyes closed and mind resting, he began to plan the rest of his day; _bank first, then if it's all in, I can make the payments_; even half-asleep, he managed to smile; _then I can make someone's day on Monday at the same time as…_; the smile soured, turning down at the corners as part of what he was doing rankled with him – he hated using something like this just to ensure he still had the advantage of surprise, but here he had no choice. _Well, at least I can make a start for it_; after resting for a few more heavenly minutes, the fox stood and made to finish dressing, making to sort out town and finish his business there before trying anything else. It was as he left that he grabbed the most important bit of said business; the envelope held solemnly in one corner as he headed for the garage with the key to the Tornado in his hand.

XXX

With its traditional jerk, the bus pulled to a sudden stop, the lurch letting one of the last occupants know this was her stop. Hefting her heavy bag, laden with the promise of more French homework than she could shake a stick at, Cream huffed her way down the bus aisle and, having said her customary goodbye to the driver, slumped onto the pavement. _Just my luck – why can't we live closer to school?_; it was a valid question, the house she shared with her mother and two chao was right on the absolute borderline of the catchment area and as such the bus was always calling here first and earlier than anywhere else; _all my friends get lie-ins, but not me_. She grumbled at the unfairness of it all as she began to pace her way home, the bag on her shoulder still heavier than she remembered it.

That was what she really didn't like about school; not enough the teachers make life a drag from nine until three-thirty every Monday to Friday, they also had the brass necks to make home life less than pleasant as well. Homework was the bane of her life; there were so many other things she'd rather be doing than sat in her room pouring over musty textbooks in the vain search for some information that might just be vaguely useful at some unforeseeable point in her life. Such dire thoughts occupied her, as they always did, until she was at her own front door, pushing it open and letting such misery slide from her mind as the two chao rushed to greet her in a blizzard of wings and cheeps. Letting her bag hit the floor, she embraced each of them, letting Cheese and Chocola melt the strife from her heart.

"Hello you two", she scratched them both on the back of their heads, just where they liked it best, "have a good day?"

"Cha,cha,chao, chao"; the squeaks overlapped each other but she got the general gist as she moved into the kitchen, checking the clock on the wall as she did so; _got about half an hour until mum gets home, an hour until dinner_; with a sigh, she threw the bag she was dragging against the leg of the table and dove for the fridge, looking at the half-open flap, almost seeing the maleficent French verbs crawling around in the darkness as she held out a pair of chao treats for her pets and set her face; _well, better make a start on this_…

She'd actually surprised not only Vanilla but also herself by the time she had helped clear the table for dinner; fighting valiantly with the aid of an old translator dictionary that crowded the large bookshelf, she was over halfway through the campaign against the French, the essay getting there but needed a little more rallying of the troops to finally be overthrown for good. But that could wait until well after tea; Cream felt her mouth water as she saw and smelt the dish her mother was bringing towards the table,

"Umm, smells delicious".

"It should do", the older rabbit spoke as she set the dish on the table and lifted the lid, allowing a cloud of aromatic steam to rise over the table, "I loved it when I was your age". Cream didn't answer; she was already spooning vast servings of the meal onto her plate, mouth watering at the prospect of such a feast.

XXX

It was as they were clearing the table to make way for pudding that there was a ring on the doorbell; both rabbits paused, puzzled, unspokenly agreeing that neither had been expecting a call at this time of the day. Silently motioning for her daughter to sit down, Vanilla headed for the front door; Cream's keen ears heard the bolt slide free and a second later, her mother chuckle for some reason,

"Cream, you have a visitor". _What?_; the rabbit girl was mystified, her friends didn't often visit on school nights, they had their own work as well as she did; it was only when she peeked around the kitchen door that she realised, eye wide open,

"Tails", the fox in question nodded, grinning at something as his namesakes swished gleefully behind him as he stood on the front doorstep, "what are you doing here?" In answer, thankfully not noticing her slight hint of embarrassment, he held up an envelop and, without any prompting or warning, called,

"Catch!" and threw it towards her. Snatching it out of the air, not looking away from his face, she opened where the top had already been slit open and pulled out an official looking sheet of paper. When she unfolded and read from it, her world turned upside down.

XXX

Vanilla was probably the most surprised of all when her daughter leapt vertically a couple of feet and punched the air, deliriously happy as she celebrated,

"Yes, they did it, they've said yes…" The older rabbit leant down to the fox and whispered,

"Who said yes to what?" Tails smiled,

"That's the confirmation for her ALT; the Amateur Licence Test".

"Really?" A hint of celebration welled up in Vanilla's own mind as she understood why Cream in such a celebratory mood; at the minute, as far as she could tell, her daughter was trying to air-guitar as her two chao circled overhead like spinning comets, "so she…?"

"If she passes; the date's on the letter".

"I'm gonna be a pilot!" Cream raced the length of the hall and thrust the letter at her mother; the elder rabbit took it with a little more dignity and read it more closely; _right, I can manage that_. As with all these things there was a fee, but she had time to get the cash together. In fact…

"Cream, one thing; okay two", she said after a second's consideration, "number one, stop jumping around like a mad thing", that took a while, but eventually the younger rabbit managed to calm down marginally, at least enough to keep both feet on the floor and hear the second proclamation, "second, this is going to cost a touch, so if I pay for it, it'll be your birthday present, okay?"

"Sorry Vanilla, I beat you to that one".

Both rabbits looked around to where Tails stood sheepishly, smile awkward as he tried to explain,

"Well, check the date; I realised it was close to the time and, ah, well, I paid for it; consider that your very early birthday present". The last few words came out in a jumble, but somehow both listeners managed to untangle them, Vanilla in particular making an immediate connection,

"Is that, that's why you were working so hard?"

"It wasn't muc…"; apparently, Cream didn't agree – Tails was rocked on his heels as the rabbit flung herself at him, almost knocking him clean off the porch as she hugged him close into her. He was too shocked to feel embarrassed, putting his arms around her out of reflex as she shouted her thanks right down his ear,

"Thank you, thank you forever; how can I ever, settle that"; her voice as becoming more strangled; _no, don't cry, not now_; Tails had to think of something fast; _bingo_.

"Well", he flicked his eyes sideways to see Vanilla raise an eyebrow, "there is that new ice-cream parlour just opened…?"

"Mum, can I?"

"Go, or I'll never hear the end of it", Vanilla agreed with a laugh; in almost the same second Cream was gone up the stairs to find her money; as her daughter left, she lent down, "sneaky one you are". Tails shrugged,

"Well, I had to do something; I was thinking about driving lessons, but", the look in Vanilla's eyes killed that idea – no more needed to be said as there was a beige blur and Cream landed, soft brown eyes open to the full and hand snatching up Tails' own.

"Right, anything you want, and I mean anything; sometimes, you are the best Tails".

"Hey, I'm the best every time"; Vanilla watched them go, shaking her head as they boarded the Tornado and she shut the door on them, smiling as she went back into the kitchen; _and they say there's no love in the world anymore – that crush is turning into more of a squeeze every day_.

XXX

_That'll keep me covered for a few days if not the whole time_; as he worked in his garage later that evening, Tails felt the logical part of his mind taking in that assumption; after all Vanilla, arguably one of the most fiscally-minded of the people he knew, hadn't seen the connection, though he had held his breath when she'd mentioned the fact he'd been working extra time. Setting down his small wrench, the fox smiled for a minute, recalling that treat he'd had with Cream; it had been as he'd driven her home that he'd had another bout of the light-headedness he sometimes felt when he was near her; it must have been the washing powder Vanilla used or something, he didn't get it from anyone else. Whatever it was, it made his head spin and his stomach shrink but in a strangely pleasant way; _if it were ice-cream_; he put it into a form he could more easily reason with; _that feeling would be mint choc chip mixed with hickory nut vinegar...who's there?_

His sensitive ears had heard a tapping in his garage; a stranger was walking on the stone floor. Mildly curious, dreamy look still on his face, the fox looked around; very quickly after one hint of the emotion in those jade eyes, his fantasies had evaporated and he was scrambling up, seeking to lock himself in the cockpit of his plane as he shrieked,

"No, no way!" It was a good try, but there was no way he was going to beat Sonic in a footrace; the blue hedgehog jumped up, snagging him out the air and dragging him down, keeping a tight grip on the squirming fox as he gleefully promised,

"Yes way", holding on, he threw his protesting younger brother over his shoulder, "you're coming to play cards Tails, and after the song and dance you made of me with Amy, you are going to sit through every second of it".

"How'd you find out?"

"A little chao told me".

"Let me guess, a chao with a large shell, no sense of direction and severe distaste of hickory nuts?"

"Yep, the very same", Sonic made ready to take off as he felt his brother give up; his ego demanded, however, he made one final jibe, "and I have to agree with her Tails, you are far too cute"; the fox slapped the hand that reached back and pinched his cheek, silently fuming and plotting a way to get back at the loose-tongued armadillo.

All that night, through Sonic's various jibes, Shadow's more subtle, biting sense of humour and Amy's alternating between stern protector of her younger sister and star-struck romantic, Tails was sustained by a single thought, one certainty that kept the fixed smile anchored on his face; _this will be worth it in the end._

The time rolled on very quickly, exceeding even Tails' most fervent hopes as, after completely mortifying him over the course of three and a bit hours before finally running him back to Mystic Ruins, where he had silently swore a long, violent and extremely painful revenge on a certain member of the Choatix, no-one mentioned his overtime again. Soon, though not soon enough for those on Angel Island, the time had almost arrived.

XXX

"Oh God", Lara reached up and adjusted her tiara for what felt like the thousandth time; _I've got to get everything just right, it's got to be a perfect day for Wyn – this time I'm not going to be let down_; she swept her eyes over the other Mobians in her household, seeing how they seemed to be coping with nerves. To her utter chagrin, they appeared at ease; Rouge, noticing her scrutiny, gave a supportive smile, Amy was smoothing the last few wrinkles out of her dress, Mighty stooped to lace her shoes and Cream was just looking around in wide-eyed delight, enchanted by the magic of the day as only a child could be.

"How do you do it?" Each of the other girls looked up at the bride's sudden question, "how do you all look so relaxed; I'm going to pieces here, and I've already done this once before".

"Then you're just the same as I was Lara; don't worry, it's natural", Rouge added with a smile, "Knuckles told me something Charmy said on our wedding day; in two hours it'll start, in four you'll be married, in eight you'll be sloshed and in twelve you'll be on your way to the best holiday you've ever had".

"Charmy came up with that?" Mighty raised an eyebrow, chuckling slightly as she remembered the bee's occasional flashes of verbal brilliance; _sure as hell makes a change to Espio's constant lemon sucking_.

"And he was right, except for the sloshed part", the bat's smile widened into a chuckles as Amy looked away, grinning,

"After what happened the first time I'm not surprised; that was a mean trick by Tails".

"He deserved it though", Cream said quietly, careful not to act too defensive just in case someone tried to make some lurid claim of a relationship between Tails and herself; _yes, he paid for my test, yes we had an ice-cream together, and I wanted him to come to the Boxing Day Bash, and…_; she cut herself off, fighting hard not to blush as, thankfully, Lara agreed with her,

"Yes, he did after that, but anyway", with a sudden lurch she was reminded of the occasion and adjusted her tiara again, massaging her temple as she demanded, "I need something to take my mind off things; Mighty, you said you…?"

"Yeah, we had a great time", the armadillo had told this story an awful lot over the past week or so to paper over Lara's fraying nerves, but the events of the recent past were pleasant to her; she smiled as she recounted her journey to the heart of her partner's family, "they live a way away, way out of Station Square", Amy leant forwards, as did Cream to a lesser extent; the chance to learn more about the third member of what had once been Team Rose not an opportunity to be missed, "took us about four hours on the trains, but luckily we weren't delayed. Got in at around four-ish; Big let us in, typical fur-ball still knew where the key was kept".

_Like he'd never been away_; again, she tried to picture what it must be like to live as Big did, a perfect memory a blessing and a curse, his damnation and, as she had been forced to demonstrate using two of the Mobians before her, his salvation as well. She realised she had paused and shook herself; not wanting to keep her audience in suspense, she carried on,

"His mum was the first in; she'd just been into the shops. Tia, her name is, and she's one of the friendliest Mobians I've ever met – just hugged the Big guy like he'd never been away. Hugged me as well, once Big introduced us; I reckon she'd have roasted an ox if I'd have said I was feeling peckish, and her daughters", the armadillo shook her head, chuckling and pointing to her left, "just imagine floppy a bit older and bigger built; you can get the picture right?"

"Good family then; they're twins right?" Amy chipped in, recalling that detail from one of Big's earlier admissions to her. Mighty had no hesitation in assuring her of that,

"Yep, identical to the last hair; they're both tortoise-shell like they're mother, Big takes after his dad as a tabby".

"Only girl cats can be tortoise-shell", Cream suddenly piped up, explaining as she recalled one of her recent lessons, "the genes for coat colour are on the X chromosomes in cats, and you need one of each for a tortoise-shell coat – they told us about it biology. So Big has to be tabby 'cause he's only got one X chromosome". Rouge shook her head, looking at the rabbit anew with respect,

"What are they teaching you in schools these days?" Mighty laughed as she gently rubbed the rabbit's ears, not seeing the slight glower the younger Mobain sent her way, a plan of revenge hatched and nurtured in her mind; oblivious, Mighty carried on,

"So anyway, these two are identical, except for one thing; when they were kittens, Tia took one of them and dabbed the tip of her tail with a bit of peroxide to make sure everyone knows who's who. So Sophie's got a white speck on her tail that she keeps dyeing to making sure she can be told apart from Chloe, who's light purple all over. And believe me, they were both, ah, more than happy to see their big brother again". Picturing the scene, Lara smiled,

"Sent the fur flying did they?"

"And the rest; first time I've ever seen anything nearly knock Big off his feet, and that's with me trying as well. Just fifteen now; goodness knows what they'll be like when they're full grown if they can do that already. Big was over the moon, one on each arm and happy as a clam; they teased him something rotten when he introduced me though, little swines, but they stopped when I picked Big up and threatened to throw him at them if they didn't". Amy giggled as the image of the Mobian in front of her hefting Big over her head like the world's furriest weight bar titillated her fertile imagination,

"Bet that shut them up".

"I'll say; their house if fairly big, but he's one cat I wouldn't want to swing around in there. But how I'll never know; his dad's tiny, he's only around here", Mighty held a flat palm about level with her eyes, "nice guy is Bill, but even he can't explain why Big's so big, even though", she snickered a little, leaving Amy and Cream guessing what the punch-line was before she winked, "he told me why he called his son Big".

"Really?" Both the cat's former team-mates listened in closely, Amy asking the telling question, "come on then, don't keep us in the dark, what's the reason?"

"Well they wanted to call him Bill, after his father, but the typist at the registration office was a bit deaf and her hearing aid batteries had run low; she misheard them and no-one noticed until after it had all been made official. It would have been a devil to try and change it, so they didn't bother; Tia always said it was the luckiest mistake she'd ever made, and she wasn't the one who made it".

A second later, the comedy of the story brought all four listening Mobians to their knees laughing, the tension of the moment banished for a while as Lara was able to laugh at the slight quirk of fate that had given one of her other guests a name to be remembered by.

On the other side of town, however, the scenario was slightly different and, for the groom in particular, a lot more foreboding.

XXX

It had started well enough; Wyn already had the Choatix and his future step-son in his flat getting ready when the bell had gone and the second wave of Mobians had crashed ashore; Sonic, Shadow, Tails and Big had quickly joined in getting ready for the ceremony, little over three hours away. All was going well until Jose, the Mobian whom Wyn had asked to be best man, laughed and pointed at the groom himself,

"Look gentlemen", he quickly rushed over and held the brown echidna's hand as Wyn realised what he was getting at, "the ice Mobian thaws". There was scattered sniggering as Wyn pulled his hand free, glaring at his friend as he wiped the bead of sweat away and Knuckles clapped him on the shoulder,

"Don't panic Wyn; it was coming off me in buckets on my big day".

"I don't want to know", the older echidna groaned, moving as Vector dodged clumsily out the way, "but if you excuse me, the melt-water's trying to flow away". That statement got the crocodile moving,

"Stay away or we'll all go down together"; most of the assembled laughed as Wyn headed for the water closet of his apartment.

When he'd re-emerged, trying hard to keep the butterflies in his stomach under control, the sight that had greeted him had been enough to make him smile,

"Hey", he called to the black hedgehog slouched against the wall, "none of that; if anyone's going to be fainting here it's me". There was no response; Wyn felt the skin of his palms prickle with worry as he cautiously crept closer,

"Shadow?" The black hedgehog didn't speak, but somehow turned his head towards the echidna, his half-shut eyes betraying that something was amiss before his knees buckled and he slumped to the floor, out as if someone had smacked him with a club. _What's going on?_; a little panic welled up as Wyn rushed over, gently holding the skin of his forearm to the black hedgehog's face and breathing a sigh of relief as breath ruffled the fur on his arm; _how the hell is he asleep?_ With increasing disbelief, the future husband rounded the corner, and walked into a scene that a second ago he would have barely credited as possible.

Everyone here was sprawled around, unconscious, dead to the world as he took a pace forwards, not registering what had happened; they were all asleep just like Shadow was. His gaze travelled around, a single question burning in his mind; _what's done this, and why am I okay?_ It was a sound that alerted him, a slight creak and mechanical grating sound that normally would have passed beneath his notice; now it made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Turning slowly, eyes drawn magnetically to the twisting door handle, Wynmacher stood transfixed as the door pushed open; _oh Christ, what does he want here?_ Twin shards of blue ice locked onto Wyn, the mouth beneath them curling into a tight smile,

"Hello Wynmacher". With dry lips, the brown echidna managed to croak,

"Locke".

A/N: What's Locke's game this time; where are the rest of the Brotherhood? Can he stop the wedding even at this late stage, and what can he do to make it so? Would Locke really break Lara's heart again?


	5. Chapter 5 Wounded Heart, Diamond Soul

Chapter Five – Wounded Heart, Diamond Spirit.

A/N: Last chapter – short but sweet story. It all ends here, but in what way:

HHH – Get out of the flowerpot – no matter how much you might want to miss sports, you'll never look like a begonia. Besides, Locke's not here to do Wyn in. Is he?

Ri2 – It doesn't sound good I know, but sounds don't often match appearances. Big's family will make an appearance later, but for now, read on for another recipe right from the cookbook of Mama Armadillo!

TH – Yeah, for us it was blackberry vinegar; sour enough to shrink your face for days afterwards; you'd rather than the bug than the cure. But is Locke about to cause trouble – I'll bet it's nowhere near as much trouble as you can cause!

As the former guardian stepped into the room, it took Wyn most of his courage not to bolt away; though Locke wasn't a patch on him in the physical sense he recalled enough of Locke's action when Lara had been kidnapped by the Dark Legion to know there was a lot more to him than met the eye. _He's got powers I can only dream about_; the brown echidna licked his suddenly parched lips and took in a sharp, shallow breath, flicking his eyes around where everyone now lay sprawled, a testament to Locke's formidable bloodline; _and he loves Lara, he still loves here – and here I am taking her away from him._ As much to distract his own deadly thoughts as anything else, Wyn indicated around him, tone hard but not accusing,

"What's going on Locke? What did you do to them?"

"Nothing they won't recover from", he didn't spare any of the unconscious Mobians, not even his own son, a second glance as he advanced steadily, "they will wake when I'm gone, remembering nothing". _Oh good, no witnesses_; try as he might even the normally cheerful chef couldn't see anything positive emerging from that statement,

"So, ah, why…"

"Because", Locke stopped pacing forwards, letting his eyes meet Wyn's; the brown echidna had the impression of being under a microscope as this strange, bitter thing loomed over him, probing, searching for a weakness he could use to denounce him as unworthy to wed the woman he loved. _He cares for Lara, even now, years after their divorce_; he tried to put himself in the former guardian's shoes and made a little headway in understanding why Locke would do what he was surely about to start as his lips moved again,

"…I have some things to make clear Wynmacher. Very clear indeed".

It wasn't the words exactly, it was the tone they were spoken in that caused him to bite as he did; Wyn crossed his arms, not about to be spoken to like he was some kind of moron and this lecture was a great treat for him,

"Well then, let's hear them, but let me tell you this Locke", he took his own step forwards, hands raised even if he knew worst come to worst he was probably less than nothing in a fight against this Mobian, "nothing you say or do will stop me walking up the aisle about two hours from now". He held the gaze of those ice cubes and; now what was going on; instead of swelling with anger, choking on his pride, Locke instead backed down, a smile, cutting and caustic maybe but a smile nonetheless, broke over the former guardian's face,

"Good"; _what?_; this was getting rapidly out of hand in Wynmacher's eyes; _if he's not here to try and stop me, why…?_ "you're getting there Wynmacher; I'm glad Lara found someone like you after…we separated. Now I need you to prove to her, that", Wyn could almost see the other echidna's strength draining away from him; Locke's fists were curled, his eyes screwed shut as he forced his lips to speak the next mangled words, "there are Mobians, who will care for her". _I don't get it_;

"That's why I'm standing at the altar with her today", Wyn tried to make sense of Locke's seemingly cryptic statement, "I love her as much as it's possible to and…"

"Exactly", the single word stopped him cold; the fire in Locke's eyes now burned with a freezing heat, passionless flames dancing in his eyes as he carried on, "you have to put her first in everything; she must be the most important thing in your life. I forgot that, I thought the Master was more important than she was and I stabbed her in the back because of it; oh I hurt her, more than she'll ever let on because, somehow, she still respects me", an ugly laugh punctuated the tirade, Locke's eyes narrowed as the fires turned inwards, "I don't know why; I don't respect me, I know I have no excuses for what I've done and the best I could do was let her go, give her the chance to recover from the knife I slid into her back. And she's done that; Wyn", this time it was the need, the want he could see permeating every facet of Locke's being that forced the brown echidna back a pace, "you are her second chance and I ask, no, I beg of you; don't let her down. She needs to know she has people who will love her the way she is because I forgot how to. Put her on the pedestal she deserves to be on, treat her like she gem she really is; you have to do this, honour and keep her…"

He couldn't go on and the only think that surprised Wyn about that fact was that he'd been able to talk for as long as he had; every single one of those words must had ripped him up internally, forced him to rake over the old guilt he still felt as he had failed his wife and child. Locke sagged, physically exhausted as he breathed raggedly; he somehow mustered the energy to raise his head and, with a jolt, Wyn realised he was waiting for an answer. Trying to keep a cool head and think logically, the brown echidna spoke,

"I will do my best Locke", the tear-stained eyes jerked up; _the best is no good, you've got to succeed_; "and it will be good enough, to do all you said and more. Lara already is the most important thing in my life, by a distance; I can't forget, or even pretend to forget who she is". He still didn't know how Locke would react to this; as far as he knew Knuckle's father was still deranged and dangerous; all he could do was cross his fingers and hope as Locke digested his reply.

"Good, good", the second word was final, an acceptance even at the cost of pain he couldn't even, didn't want to even try to contemplate; suddenly looking a lot older yet somehow more fulfilled than he had when he'd entered, Locke turned to leave, speaking over his shoulder as he did so, "you and your wife won't hear from me again Wyn, not unless it's necessary; some scars can't be healed, not even by a nurse as proficient as Lara. The others will awaken when I'm gone; look after her, be the one she can love forever, the one who'll never forget her". _Right_; Wyn watched on solemnly as Locke left; it was as he was turning away that, just on the very fringes of his hearing, the brown echidna heard words that truly, finally let him understand how huge a burden Locke was taking on in being here.

"Be the Mobian I was too weak to be".

The depth of bitterness and loathing in those words was enough; Locke's self-hatred was enough to shatter even a heart of ice and Wyn could never be said to possess one of those. Heedless of the groans as the others awakened from enforced slumber, he vaulted stirring bodies and wrenched open the door to his apartment, desperate to offer succour even if there was nothing he could even remotely offer to compare to that ocean of malice. He looked left and right, only to be met with emptiness; as silently as he had arrived, the guardian was gone.

A few hours later, as he lifted the veil from his new bride's face and took her into his arms, Wyn let his eyes flick over the scene arrayed before him one last time. Everyone was smiling, cheering and applauding but, more important than that, just out the corner of his eye Wyn fancied he could vaguely see the ghost of Locke which had sworn to protect her, honour her and keep her even if its physical body had been forced to forswear such vows, finally fracture and prise loose its hold, eventually passing the treasure it had yearned to possess once more to someone it had judged worthy of the honour. Silently, as she kissed her true love, Lara lost the guardian she had never know had watched over her.

XXX

When Athair had been located unconscious in one of the vehicle bays with Locke nowhere to be found, the Brotherhood had scrambled; all their efforts had been bent on finding their errant son. However, only one of them had the sense and, Sojourner shook his head as he accepted the truth, bitter experience to have a good idea of where to look. _And_; the willow-thin echidna ducked past a gaggle of casual onlookers, sighing as he saw the sight ahead of him, wondering what it was that caused his fourth-son to act as he had wrongly done and still did, unable to help himself.

Locke sat ahead of him on a nearby bench; a spot check would have shown him as disinterested, even half-asleep, but a closer inspection would have revealed that to have been as wrong as it was possible to be. The mechanic was tense as a steel cable, every muscle in his body virtually humming with the effort of keeping him in one place as, Sojourner closed his eyes at the irony, the church that overlooked this scene began to play the wedding march. _Why do we torture ourselves like this?_; he saw the twisted grimace that was writhing over his fourth-son's expression, now at a loss to explain what it was that drove people to punish themselves for their sins. Sitting here, listening to the muted sounds of the ceremony he had once been a part of was a self-inflicted punishment; Locke forced himself to see again and again what he had lost through his own failings. Sojourner could understand; since Cream had inadvertently given back a fraction of the light and warmth to the dusty shrine Janelle-Li's bedroom had been, he had been able to analyse why he had kept his wretched vigil as he had; _it was a punishment_. Now that he could see, the wisdom of hindsight clearing his eyes, Sojourner could not quite believe he had done what he had; _I didn't stay there on those two nights to remember my daughter_; tears threatened to blur his vision as even now thinking about her hurt somewhat; _I did it to recall my own pain, my own failings_.

Every night, every isolated, solitary hour he had locked himself alone in his daughter's former bedroom had been full of recrimination; would it have been seen had he made her go to a doctor earlier? Had the headaches some months ago been a symptom he had failed to pick up on? _And worst of all_; this was where he and Locke differed, why it would hurt the younger guardian more even than the elder; _in Locke's case, it is his fault_. And that was the killing statement; Locke was more than smart enough to have realised why he acted as he did, but that was only his head, his intelligent brain thinking the error through. The heart is an organ that lacks the capacity to think; all it knows are feelings, and these feelings had culminated in this masochistic ritual – Locke's mistake had lead to this eventuality, of the only woman he would ever love leaving him forever, and now that heart demanded he stay here, reap the bitter fruit he had sown. Every guardian knew the pain of loss as their partners passed away long before their unnatural life-spans were spent, but he and his fourth-son were special cases even then; for them, there was more hurt present than should ever be. _But now_; Sojourner squared his shoulders, about as thick through as both his father's clenched fists held together; _it's time to finish this_.

XXX

"Fourth-son", the voice was quiet as though not wishing to be overhead; Locke looked with his eyes and saw Sojourner, but his mind was gone, away on the inside of the church where he had once been, only now there were no celebrations, no light, no laughter, just a blackened, burnt ruin, "it's time to be away". The voice was persuasive, but no, not yet, there had to be one last act, the last words that would end his hope forever. So he shook his head, looking forwards again as Sojourner waited also; it would have been folly to try and convince Locke to leave now. Both echidnas waited until, with a jerk of fear, Sojourner realised what they were waiting for; with the music died down, a single voice could be heard muffled through the heavy stone walls,

"...these two should not be married, speak now or forever hold your peace".

Locke sat straight, his teeth bared as war reached fever pitch; his heart slammed into his chest, railing at the treatment as he knew he shouldn't, couldn't let the unthinkable happen. She'd be gone forever, and he'd have nothing, no-one, yet he couldn't move as the equally strong force of his mind anchored him in place. This was the right thing to do, give his ex-wife the chance to be free of his oppressive shadow with a new love and he had to grant it, even as it crushed him to ash and dirt to do so. He remained in this tortured limbo, at war within, until the voice began again and the moment was lost, reconciliation beyond him for good. And as it had been in strife, so too in peace – he couldn't feel anguish, nor could he feel relief; he just felt something that was at the same time neither and both. A hand settled on his now relaxed shoulder; he looked up, his eyes met Sojourner's and this time he stood. Silently as words were unnecessary, the two guardians silently departed the scene.

XXX

Another pop let the champagne flow as another toast was raised, Wyn just about managing to raise his voice and shout,

"You guys are the best", as everyone cheered and just generally let their hair down. There was music and dancing for those who wanted it, a mini-bar present if anyone fancied some refreshment and food and non-alcoholic drinks aplenty. True to the promise, everyone had brought something to help the reception go with a bang; even Cream had been able to chip in with the party poppers and small affairs such as that. In the middle of such high spirits, with merriment and joy high in the air, no-one, least of all the person it was aimed at, suspected skulduggery on the air.

"Hey Mighty, don't move", of course, the armadillo turned around at this and Big clapped a hand over his eyes, hoping he was doing a good job on this as he'd got the wink a few seconds earlier.

"What, what's up?"

"Well I was going to say you'd got confetti on your back, but now it's slipped down your shirt; if it gets under you'll never here the end of it. Here, let me"; the armadillo gave him the nod and froze, not moving as he untucked the back of her white shirt at the same time as revealing one of his natural blades; a second later she heard him moan, "oh great; don't move and I'll hook that little gribble free" At his partner's nod, Big turned his head and winked back, still not quite sure what the plan was but, seeing as he owed Mighty one anyway for drenching him a third time following her most recent visit to his home, he was content to play his part.

_Man, that was lucky_; though her shell was nerveless, the skin that ran underneath it was sensitive and could feel as the cat's claw levered open her armour; _if that had have got under…hey_. Something light hit the skin exposed by Big's claw like a miniature snowstorm; taking her time, the armadillo nevertheless spun around to see Cream and Sonic both beaming, one stood at each side of the huge cat.

"That was for telling tales about Tails", the rabbit piped up, grinning as Sonic added his two cents worth,

"And for spreading my old name around shelly"; not liking where this was going, Mighty raised a cautious eyebrow,

"What did you do?" Both other Mobians shared a glance, then simultaneously raised the objects they had hidden behind their backs; as if it were a catalyst, when Mighty read what was printed on the side of the small plastic bottles she exploded into action, howling with torment as it felt like a nest of angry fire-ants were burrowing into the skin of her sensitive back. Sonic and Cream exchanged a high five as the armadillo shrieked, spasming wildly, then left calmly as Mighty fell to the ground, rolling around in a vain effort to stop the awful torture as Big was shouting for help to pin her down long enough for him to stop it for her. Rabbit and hedgehog waiting until they were far enough away for her not to see, then, as Vector commented his work mate on her hitherto unrevealed break-dance skills, broke down laughing together as the itching powder continued its vengeful work.

XXX

Lara was really, truly, content; here everyone she loved and cared for, and who cared for her in kind, were together and celebrating for both her and, she leant silently against him as he sat down, her new husband as well. _Nothing could make it better than this_; and it was true – she could think of nothing she wanted now, no single entity that could add a new dimension to this complete picture. Well, maybe there was one; she tapped Wyn on the shoulder, watching as he turned around, just giving him enough time to hoist his glass up before she threw her arms around him, hugging him close now and always.

"Hey babe", the brown echidna placed his free arm around her shoulders, drawing her in even tighter before she heard his voice chuckle, "don't get too comfy; someone broke your rule". She stepped back a bit and looked at him curiously before following his eyes to see something peeking out from under her place mat, a scrap of paper protruding from under the bride's place. Anticipating even if she was slightly miffed that someone had forgotten her and Wyn's declaration of no gifts but yourselves, the echidna lady carefully lifted a corner of the mat up and slowly eased the paper; it wasn't a paper at all. It was an envelope; _well, I have to say I never specified cards – trust him to think of a way round that_; she smiled as she slit open the top, recognising the handwriting on the front and allowing the card to fall into her hand.

"Careful"; Wyn quickly snatched a few falling leaves out of the air as they fell from the inside of the card, Lara not seeing them as she opened it and read the quiet, touching message it contained. She closed it again, seeing the front picture of a bride holding a bouquet of red roses, passing it for Wyn to see, turning only when perturbed by his sudden lack of interest.

"Hey, you…" she tailed off, seeing his open-mouthed shock as she looked at her husband again, the brown echidna's eyes fixed on the pieces of paper he'd managed to rescue for an inglorious end on the floor with the rest of the remains of the confetti. She was shocked as well by the vision, but before she could say anything he wordlessly offered her one of the slips, his hand trembling like a leaf in a breeze as he did. She took it, her eyes glossing over it as most of her attention remained fixed on him; it was only on the second read she really understood what she was holding, and on about the sixth when she truly believed it. _Oh dear…no_; she couldn't accept this, never in a million years; _I need answers!_

XXX

With a sudden jerk the music was cut off; even as the last few bars lingered in the air a voice, high-pitched and apparently on the verge of hyperventilation cut through the silence and confusion that was just beginning to dawn,

"Miles Prower", all eyes turned to the fox in question, a particular threesome especially cringing as they remembered what had happened last time he'd been centre stage as a gig like this, "get both your tails up here right now!" _Okay, they found it_; Tails took a deep breath, running through the speech he'd had prepared in his head, realising how suddenly flimsy it now sounded as he took his slow, deliberate steps to the front of the stage, where Lara and Wyn were both waiting, tracking his progress with minds oblivious to any other whisperings or conspiracy theories being voiced in the air behind the fox's back. Eventually, when he could feel the butterflies in his stomach settle down to hibernate again, Tails managed to look up and offer an innocent smile,

"Yes…"

"Don't you yes us young man", to the consternation of most Wyn was looking almost angry as he thrust something into the fox's face, "what the hell is this?" Somehow, even at this late hour, the fox managed to conjure up a tiny spark of sarcasm,

"It appears to be a piece of paper, with", he quickly amended his plans as Lara threatened to Look at him, "with, er, an invitation printed on it". Lara's answer was a bone-chilling whisper,

"An invitation", her fist was shaking as she waved it near the fox's nose, virtual tears smouldering in her eyes as she finished, "but why, how?"

"Because I heard it from Knuckles", the words came out in a torrent, the fox finally coming clean about this bombshell, "he said you two were saving up, going to be careful for later, after the big day, maybe even next year and I thought no". The fox shook his head, resolve and determination set deep in his young face as he took a breath, no-one able to interrupt him before he carried on,

"You always said, both of you, that you wanted to see the world, well go ahead; you of all people deserve a damn good time. That's what I could do, the least I could do because you treated me so well, almost like a part of the family, when I was around and so I did it. Those are your tickets, the ship leaves next week; you said bring something that'll help the reception go well, and I have. That's your wedding present from me; I've given you your honeymoon".

Silence fell, there was nothing that could be said against that; the emotion in the fox's voice told everyone that he'd wanted to say words to that effect for a long, long time. He panted, mentally exhausted by the confession, just having the energy to look up and see the new husband and wife looming over him; _say what you want, say it was too much – I don't care, and I'm not sorry I did it_; he was defiant, but suddenly he saw it – there was no need to be. As the two echidnas fell upon him, squeezing him tightly as somehow single claps merged together to form wild, exultant applause, Tails felt his heart soar, enlightened that his hard work had paid off.

"All that work", Wyn's voice was choked as though he couldn't believe this was really happening to him, "all those times you were completely knackered, all for this, for us; you damn near broke your back, just for Lara and I".

"And I'd do it again"; there was no bravado, no false ego boost; Tails meant every word he said as he answered, "I don't think there's a single person here who wouldn't if they'd have had my chance".

"A month", Lara really was in tears, Tails feeling his own eyes start to leak and he didn't try to stop it, feeling the press of more Mobians; he might have seen Rouge's ear tips visible but didn't look too hard as he concentrated on listening to Lara's voice, "a whole month, seeing the world, luxury cruise ship"; _until Vector and the others told me, I never knew what a cruise was – going on one was a distant dream, not even that – he's made it all come true_; she hugged the fur in front of her, not caring of the scene she was making as she was sure no-one else did, "you are…a diamond Tails. A real, true diamond".

XXX

It was a long time later when he could finally writhe free of all the people who wanted to hug him, congratulate him or just gaze in mute astonishment of his feat, but eventually Tails managed to earn a little breathing space, bustling out of the room rented for the now really raucous celebrations and into the cooler hallway, the ringing in his ears starting to subside as he drank in a deep, cool breath. _Well_; he chuckled even as his mind understated the reaction he'd received; _that went better than expected_. He leant against the wall, the brickwork cool under his back as he relived that moment over and over again, the sheer triumph of that moment he was sure would never leave him, never be diminished. It was as perfect as it was possible to be, even if…

"Tails?" _Uh oh_; he was hoping she wouldn't have figured his sham out so fast, how he'd callously used her birthday present as a way to cover his butt against awkward questions while preparing for this, but now he didn't have a choice. Trying to put on a wobbly smile, the fox turned and answered pleasantly,

"Um, hi Cream", his voice tailed off; he couldn't find anything else to say as the rabbit came a little closer, leaning on the wall near him with a single hand as her eyes pierced him hard, scanning for the guilt that was now rolling off him in waves. After a second, she spoke,

"Well, that's one way to make a party go with a bang", he smiled at the frippery of humour before things went undeniably grim, "but help me out here", she looked into his eyes directly, "the reason you were working so hard, that was for this wasn't it? The ALT was a bonus, but you really did all that for this didn't you? My birthday was nothing compared to their wedding was it?"

He couldn't deny it and he couldn't think of a single word to excuse himself; with a lump in his throat he hadn't expected to feel, the fox gave a single nod and waited with heart in mouth, waiting fort he executioners axe to descend and finished him forever; _and here we go_; he braced for it as Cream shook her head,

"That is so sweet".

_What?_; possibly the last thing he'd expected to happen – he opened his mouth to ask, raised his eyes to see the rabbit shake her head, smiling from ear to oversized ear as she explained,

"Of course it's not; listen, this is a once-in-a-lifetime event, you should have gone all out to make sure it went as well as you could make it go, no scrimping on the excess. I get a birthday every year, but this is something else – Tails I'm flattered you even thought about my test in the light of this, you paying for it really was the cherry on top. You've done something amazing today and you can't even see you've done it, you're scared I was going to be angry weren't you?"

"How'd you…?" That answer and his expression of gormlessness was enough to send her into laugher,

"Your tohhoho, much like Sonihihihic", she giggled as he tried to make sense of it, "you really don't get it". _Nope, not a clue_; he gave up trying to fathom it out as Cream wiped her eyes and looked at him again, humour dispersed as something else, something at the same time more terrifying and yet more welcoming, beckoning, seemed to take over. Tails felt his mouth go dry and the butterflies in his stomach whirl up again as he saw the rabbit girl before him; her soft eyes seemed to let him sink into them, envelope him, blot out the horizons of his world until they were all he could see. Almost magnetically it seemed were the two young Mobians drawn forwards, the breath of one ruffling the fur on the face of the other as the time seemed to stand still.

There was a sudden echoing explosion; the two sprang apart as a blue blur swept past them, a second purple one not far behind,

"Creamlegitorshe'llgetyou"; _huh_; the rabbit looked behind her, straight into the jade green eyes of a seriously ticked-off Mighty; the armadillo raised one doom-laden finger,

"YOU!"

"AHHH" the previous few seconds forgotten, Cream hurtled headlong after Big and Sonic, racing like a mad thing as Mighty bulldozed her way forwards behind her; Tails stood on tip-toe, squeezing into the passage side to avoid being run over as the armadillo shrieked,

"When I cop hold of you I'm going to make myself a lucky rabbit's foot; one of mum's old recipes to try out as well, rabbit-ear fritters!"

"Mercy".

"Forget it"; watching the chasing foursome depart, Tails saw the back of Mighty's now drenched shirt, the bubbles atop it showing what had been used to flush out the lingering itching powder from under her shell; he managed to wait until both the hunter and hunted were out of earshot before folding up in hysterics and staggering back to the still heartily blazing party.

The celebrations lasted well into the night; it was only as they were winding down finally that another Mobian found it within himself to say goodbye.

XXX

He sighed to himself as he saw the way he needed to go; though not usually a night owl, Thunderhawk had been forced to rise in the middle of the night to use the bathroom following over-hydrating following one of his exercise sessions. After the biological necessities had been dispensed with, he'd swept Haven more out of habit than anything else; that had been when he'd realised something was badly awry. _Not like we weren't expecting this though_; since Locke had been teleported back to Haven by his own son, the rest of the Brotherhood had kept their distance, unsure of what to make of seemingly indifferent mood. Only Spectre might have seen, and Locke wouldn't let anyone close enough to even touch him without suddenly turning away. Only now at this ungodly hour was he venting some much-needed rage and aggression; _and I've got to pick up the pieces_. Thunderhawk shook off the gloomy thought as he walked on, trying to ignore his own tiredness at the same time as wonder what sort of state his training room would be in when he got there.

XXX

It was ahead of him, mocking, taunting; he flew at it with everything he had, everything he believed in and some things he'd never even known he possessed but it was still not enough. _Not enough_; he snarled as he hammered at it again, doing the same damage a gnat would do if it struck a suit of full armour; _the story of my life – I was never, will never be enough_. The face before him knew this; sometimes it morphed into Wynmacher, sneering and claiming what had once been his, but every time it did he snarled and shook his head – that was an illusion, nothing more than a mask for the real evil to hide behind. Only when it showed itself again would he let fly, seeking to crush something he could no more harm than smoke could topple a mountain, yet still he would try.

Because the face before him, that mocked and sneered the fact that it was what it was, belonged to him.

XXX

_By the Master's shadow_; Thunderhawk watched on, incredulous at what his youngest but one son was doing, what he'd never revealed when Thunderhawk had finally managed to collar him for training. Locke was stood before his heaviest anchored bag and pounding at it hell for leather; the younger echidna was unloading fists, feet, elbow knees and even occasionally, as his limbs were deadened by repeated impacts, his forehead as well. But Thunderhawk knew he had to step in; Locke had been doing this for who knows how long and already he was suffering; his elbows and knees had been abraded of both fur and skin, blood trickling down and flying off in tiny droplets, mingling with the sweat streaming from his body. Stepping as close as he dared, the lavender echidna tried to sound imposing,

"Locke, that's enough of this for now; it's late".

"Nowhere", his fifth-son threw a vicious elbow that left a dent in a bag even he had to put some effort into beating, "near, enough".

"I think it's got the impression you don't like it".

"I don't…like me". Thunderhawk felt his temper rise, the early hour of the morning gnawing away his good spirits as he added an edge to his voice,

"Listen, I've got better things to do than watch you pound leather all night".

"Do them", a knee strike thundered home, Locke's teeth bared in a feral snarl as he followed up with a volley of punches, "then".

"No, because they involve you getting to sleep before I do". Thunderhawk made a mistake then; he grabbed one of Locke's hands; next second he was on his rear end, the world spinning as the red echidna moved like lightning, screaming like a dying soul,

"Sleep, how can I sleep; I've lost, I don't care what happens next. I've seen it, there's nothing left for me now – Dimitri take me for a fool", the rage was ending, the pain coming back; Thunderhawk saw it, managing to struggle to his knees as Locke began to storm up, "I deserve nothing, no-one. My wife, she's gone to another man; I heard them wed, I could have stopped it, but didn't; the Master knows how weak I am, how black my sins are and it should have been me", his bruised knees gave way; the purple echidna managed to catch the falling former guardian as Locke's hatred at himself finally ran its course, "it should…be…me".

_Easy fifth-son_; Thunderhawk could think nothing less even if he knew there was nothing he could do to stop this; Locke had avoided these tears for too long, now they had found him with a vengeance. He'd shed them when his own wife had been buried as had the rest of the Brotherhood before him, even his own father, but Locke's fate was possibly crueller still than the separation by death. Locke stood alone from the rest of the Brotherhood by the very nature of his heart's wounding; something not even Sojourner would properly understand. All the rest of his family could do, as Thunderhawk was beginning now, was help support him and pick up the pieces.

XXX

He remembered dimly being carried here, barely conscious, by his fifth-father; the words he couldn't place, but he was sure they would be to do with moving on only he couldn't. He knew that, following the explosion of emotions he had held within for so long, his heart was finally deceased; he'd never love another woman as he had Lara – maybe someday he could talk to them, even be friends with them, but love, no, that was impossible. _I have died_; the former guardian lolled miserably on the floor, propped up by the wall as his eyes travelled down to where he had held his heart at bay for so long, denied it to ensure Lara could live once more. With a shrug and in gradual movements, Locke eased his hands into his lap, tugging his tight-fitting, reluctant gloves from his hand, exposing his final secret, the one no-one, not even his own doting father knew of. With nothing inside but a dull, empty ache, he turned his palms over.

The backs of Locke's hands, reflected in the pale light around him, were a hairless mass of scar tissue.

This had been the cost of safeguarding Lara; whenever he had wanted to see her, whenever he had yearned to be close to her, touch her, hold her just once more, he had quenched the desire in pain and blood; his head knew she was no longer his, but his heart had refused to let go even if to refuse had meant to die. The pain had been so much easier to deal with then the guilt, but gradually, oh so slowly the urge had gotten less, the knife wielded on fewer and fewer occasions to curb his forbidden desires. _And now, I have no desires_; Lara was gone, her departure finally shattering his wounded, weakened heart – the irony made the former guardian smile, a sad but true smile, the first step on the long, winding road to recovery; _with my heart dead, I can let these scars start to heal_.

A/N: Sombre at the end, but Locke would go to any length to make sure Lara was protected; she'd hate to see him, he'd not go near her even if he had to use pain to do it. It takes a lot to make that sacrifice; if you feel nothing at all for Locke, at least respect his courage in doing that much for her.

So, where does it go from here? Well, with Lara and Wyn married, it might be someone else's turn to drop a bombshell, but who might it be? Can you help someone get back on your feet when you're just about finding your own? Will Tails and Cream finally get together at last? Maybeee…but the title would give too much away! Keep reading!


End file.
